


East Blue Monster

by FireArrowAce



Category: One Piece
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Merpeople, Fantasy, Friendship, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, I'm Bad At Tagging, Mild Gore, Monsters, Originally Posted on FanFiction.Net
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-22
Updated: 2019-08-13
Packaged: 2019-09-24 20:59:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 13
Words: 37,957
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17108018
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FireArrowAce/pseuds/FireArrowAce
Summary: (One Piece AU) Zoro and his sister Kuina move to a house in the mountains. In a local bar, Zoro sees a wanted poster of a sea creature that lives in a lake nearby. The bounty is enough to pay for the treatment of his sister's disease. He decides to capture the creature and claim it's bounty. But will he really be able to trade the creature for money after it becomes his friend?





	1. Chapter 1

"We're here." Zoro said as he parked his car in front of their temporally house. His sister, Kuina, looked through one of the car's windows at the small building. The green-haired man got out of the car and opened the car door for the other passenger. His sister got out and together they walked to the front door of their new house.

The house had already furniture in it since it was a holiday home of a friend of Kuina. They could use it for as long as they needed.

Kuina sat down on the couch. "I'm going to get our stuff. You stay here." Zoro said to his sister and left to get their belongings from the car.

* * *

A few months ago, Kuina got sick. At first, they thought she had caught a bad cold or something like that. But instead of getting better after a few weeks, Kuina's condition only got worse.

They went to the doctor, but he didn't know what it was either. After a lot of medical tests at the hospital, she got diagnosed with some kind of terminal disease. The sickness affects the body and brain. It causes someone to suffer from bad headaches, organ failure, a lot of pain and breathing difficulties.

This sickness will kill Kuina. There is only one (experimental) treatment. The treatment for this disease is very expensive and can only be given in an other country. Zoro and Kuina don't have enough money for the flight to that county, let alone the treatment.

Even with the treatment the chances of Kuina surviving are only twenty percent. Well, at least it's twenty percent more than without the treatment.

They decided to move temporally to a place outside the city they lived in. The air in the city is full of smoke and other pollution. This made it difficult for Kuina to breathe properly. A friend of her told them that they could move to his holiday home near the mountains. There are only small villages there and the air is cleaner.

Zoro and his sister accepted the offer. Sure, it wouldn't help cure the disease, but now the woman could breathe more easily which made living more bearable. They would stay there until they have enough money for the treatment or until Kuina succumbs to her sickness.

* * *

Zoro picked up the last of their things and locked the car. He went inside and put the box he was holding down on the ground. He went to check on his sister only to find her fast asleep on the couch. He couldn't blame her. It had been a long day and they were both tired.

He picked her up and carried her upstairs to one of the bedrooms. She wasn't very heavy. She had lost a lot of weight the past few weeks, another symptom of her disease. She didn't eat much and would occasionally throw up the food that she ate.

He laid her down on the bed and covered her with a blanket. He then went back down to grab some dinner for himself. The meal was simple; just a few sandwiches they hadn't eaten during the ride.

He finished eating and began unpacking some of the boxes. Only the most necessary things, like toothbrushes and toothpaste, food and clothes. He could unpack the rest the next day.

He brushed his teeth and changed into his pyjamas. After checking one last time on his sister, he went to the other bedroom. He hadn't napped at all that day so he was more tired than usual. He fell asleep as soon as he hit the bed.

* * *

The next morning he and Kuina ate breakfast in their new kitchen. After that, Zoro began unpacking the rest of their things while Kuina was sitting in the backyard reading a book. The man did everything by himself because he didn't want his sister to wast the little energy she had.

Zoro finished unpacking within half an hour. They didn't have that many things with them. The only thing they still needed to do was get supplies for dinner. They somehow managed to forget buying things like meat and vegetables. Fortunately, the nearest village was not even a ten minute ride from where they were.

"Kuina, I'm going to town. Do you need me to buy anything for you?" He asked his sister as he grabbed his car keys. "No, thank you. Just get the food. I'll call you if I change my mind." She said. The man waved her goodbye and left through the front door.

He got in his car and drove away. He used an app on his phone to navigate to the village. Kuina had insisted that he used it because he always got lost (this isn't true, the road just moves all the time).

The village was small, only a dozen of houses. There was a big lake nearby called East Blue. Zoro parked his car in the parking lot near the small supermarket and got out.

Even though the supermarket was small, everything he needed was there. And it was cheap too. He got everything he needed, paid for the supplies and left the store. He hadn't even been there for ten minutes, so Zoro decided to drink something at the local bar.

He put all the things he had bought in his car and walked through town looking for the bar. He found it at the back of the town. It looked a bit like a western saloon on both the inside and outside. There were all kinds of fishing supplies hanging on the walls and there were a few aquariums with all kinds of colourful fish in it.

There was nobody in the building except for the man behind the bar. Zoro sat down at the bar. The bartender looked up from his magazine. The man looked to be in his late fifties or begin sixties. He was smoking a big pipe. That probably wasn't a good idea considering the whole building was made of wood.

"I've never seen you here before. You new in town?" The man asked. Zoro shook his head. "No, I'm living temporally in a house nearby. You could call it a vacation of some sort." He answered, not really feeling like explaining his and his sister's situation. "Could I have a beer?"

"Sure, as long as you pay for it." The bartender said and went to get a beer for his customer. This gave Zoro time to look at the wall behind the bar. There were all kinds of papers pinned at the wall. Some were photos, others were things cut from newspapers. The thing that caught Zoro's attention was a wanted poster.

On the wanted poster was a drawing of some kind of monster. A sea monster to be precisely. The creature had the tail of a shark and the upper body of some humanoid creature. It had sharp teeth and claws. The bounty on the creature's head was $1.000.000. Dead or alive.

The bartender returned with the beer and a glass. He put them both down in front of the other man. Zoro took the bottle and poured himself some beer. He took a sip of his drink. Yeah, this is good beer.

"Who or what is that creature on the poster?" Zoro asked the man as he pointed at the wanted poster. "Oh that? That's the East Blue Monster. It's a terrifying monster that lives in the lake near town.

It's very hostile and has killed a lot of people over the years. Sometimes, the bodies of its victims were never found. The drawing you see here is made by an artist who drew the monster with the help of someone who had an encounter with the creature and survived.

They say that the monster is thousands of years old and was awoken a couple of years ago by an unlucky fisherman who accidentally caught the creature with his hook. Many brave men have tried to catch or kill the monster, but all have failed.

With every death the bounty on its head grew until the monster was worth $1.000.000. That is the price the families of the victims are willing to pay for the creature's capture or death." The man finished talking.

"Thousands of years old? Why do they think that?" Zoro asked as he took another sip of his beer. "The monster appeared about ten years back out of nowhere. There isn't any kind of river or other passage where the creature could come through and the monster doesn't look capable of moving on land. It must have been in the lake even before people began to inhabit the land around the lake." The man told him.

It all sounded like bullshit in Zoro's ears. Monsters didn't exist, but the bounty on the fictional creature's head was very high. More than enough to pay for Kuina's treatment. Maybe he should go and look to see if the creature really existed.

Zoro drank the last of his beer and stood up. Taking a look by the lake wouldn't hurt anyone. He waved goodbye to the bartender and left the bar. He got in his car and drove away. There was a small sand path leading to the lake which you could drive over with your car. He had to drive down the mountain a bit.

He arrived at the lake and parked his car. He got out and looked at the environment surrounding the lake. It was beautiful. It hadn't been touched by humans for years, probably because of the monster.

Zoro sat down on a big rock near the water, his legs dangling just above the water. He could see the whole lake from there. There didn't seem to be any unusual activities in the water. He decided to just sit there for a while. Maybe he could take a small nap. It was nice and quiet here..

* * *

Zoro woke up a little while later. He wasn't sure why, but he had the strange feeling he was being watched. He looked around him. There was nobody in sight. The water was quiet too.

He looked on his watch. More than an hour had passed. He hoped Kuina wasn't mad at him for taking so long. He should get going. There was no monster to be seen.  
He was about to get off the rock when something in the water caught his eye. Just below the rock he was sitting on. Something big moved in the water.

He slowly looked down at the water just below his dangling feet. What he saw made his blood run cold. Two big eyes stared back at him. The eyes belonged to a face. The face was a few inches below the surface. He quickly pulled his legs away form the water and away from the creature.

Who or what was down there seem to have noticed it had been seen and shot away in the water. Zoro could see a small bit of a red tail before it disappeared, leaving the shocked and confused man behind.

Zoro just sat there for several seconds staring at the water below. What had he just seen? Was that the monster? It _did _look a bit like the creature of the drawing on the wanted poster, but not quite the same.__

____

____

In the brief moment he had been able to see the creature, he saw that it didn't look as threatening as the monster on the wanted poster. The creature he had seen looked more.. human. Except for the tail, that is.

He scanned the lake for another sign of the creature he had seen not even a minute ago, but he couldn't find anything. He hadn't been dreaming, right? No, he was pretty sure he was awake.

Zoro stood up and walked to his car. He had seen enough. He took a seat in his car and drove away. If what he had seen was real, then..

..maybe, just maybe, he had found a way to get money for his sister's treatment.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I had this idea in my head for some time now. I don't think it's going to be a long story, but I've always wanted to try something like this.  
> Also, the price on the bounty poster isn't as high as the bounties in the real One Piece anime and manga. This is mostly because it's more like the real world and I don't think anyone would give several millions for the capture of a creature. I still wanted to make the bounty high though, so $1.000.000 it is!  
> 


	2. Chapter 2

The next day Zoro returned to the lake. He had told his sister that he would be riding around in his car for a bit to get to know their surroundings. Kuina wanted to stay home and said she would call him if anything happened.

The man didn't say it, but he was glad his sister wanted to stay home. He didn't want to tell his sister that he was going to try and capture some kind of monster yet. He didn't know if he was going to succeed and he didn't want to bring her hopes up.

He had taken his swords with him in case the creature in the lake turned out to be hostile towards him after all. He also had a small basket with food with him for when he got hungry. He would be staying there for most of the day after all.

When he arrived at the East Blue Lake he parked his car on the same place as the previous day. He grabbed his things and walked towards the big rock. The rock was the best place to sit because you had a good view of the lake and it was the place he had seen the monster the previous day.

The man didn't know what to expect. It could take a while for the monster to come to him, if it came at all. Zoro knew he had to be patient and wait for it to come.

After about half an hour, the creature had yet to show up and the man was starting to doubt that he had really seen the monster the other day. Then again, Zoro was an impatient guy. Feeling a little bit tired Zoro decided to take a nap, just like the previous day.

* * *

When Zoro woke up, he once again had the feeling he was being watched. He guessed it was the creature again. He knew that if he made a quick, sudden movement, he could scare who of what was down there away. He didn't want that.

He slowly sat up. His eyes scanned the water below the rock. He couldn't see anything at first, but after about two minutes of watching the water below he saw it.

The creature was far below the surface. It probably saw Zoro waking up and had moved further down in the water.

Zoro didn't move a muscle as he and the creature stared at each other. The man didn't see much of the monster because the water was dark, especially further down. The only thing he could see were two eyes. The same eyes that had watched him the previous day.

The man didn't know what to do. He knew that trying to catch it now would not work. The bartender had told him that all the people who had tried to capture it had failed. Why would he be an exception? No, he had to think of an other way.

He slowly moved backwards on the rock, his eyes not losing sight of the creature. He decided to just observe the monster for now. He wanted to know what it was, what it did and if it really was as hostile as the man at the bar had said.

Suddenly, his stomach rumbled. He reached over to the basket and took out a sandwich with some kind of meat. He began to eat it.

The creature watched him like a hawk. It came a little bit closer to the surface as Zoro grabbed another sandwich. The man raised an eyebrow. He wondered what it was thinking.

Zoro didn't remember when, but at some point the creature was so close it almost touched the surface of the water. It was kind of scary considering the rock he was sitting on was only a few feet high which made the distance between him and the monster not more than a meter.

Zoro could now see almost everything of the creature. It had a long shark-like tail and a dorsal fin on its back. They were almost completely red, except for the tips of the fins. Those were black. Weird colours for a shark. Then again, everything was weird about this creature.

The upper body of the creature looked human. It had a torso, arms and a head that looked just like that of a human. The monster didn't look that old. If it was a human, it would be a teen. Probably a _male _teen because it didn't look like it was a girl.__

____

__

The creature followed every movement as Zoro ate. It stared almost longingly at the food in his hand. This gave the man an idea.

Zoro grabbed another sandwich. He tore off a little piece of the sandwich and threw it in the water. He made sure to not throw it too hard into the lake so it wouldn't scare the creature away. At first, the creature backed up a little, probably a little startled by the small splash the bread made.

Then, after about a minute, the creature slowly swam back up towards the piece of sandwich. Zoro watched as a hand slowly grabbed the floating food. The bread got pulled underwater. The creature stared at it for a few seconds before moving it towards its mouth.

The monster opened its mouth and Zoro could see sharp teeth. _A lot _of sharp teeth. The creature took a small bite of the now soaked food. After it ate the small piece of sandwich, it put the rest of the bread in its mouth. A few seconds later the creature spit half of the bread out which floated back to the surface.__

____

____

Zoro chuckled. The only thing the creature had eaten completely was the meat that was on the sandwich. It apparently didn't like bread that much. The monster looked at him with questioning eyes. The man thought for a bit. If the creature was part shark, didn't that mean that it ate a lot of fish?

Zoro grabbed the basket with food and looked for something else to give to the creature. He felt like he was feeding ducks or fish like he did when he was little. Except for the fact that this fish was a lot bigger than those in the pond near his home.

He didn't have fish, but he still had a few sandwiches with meat left. He grabbed them and removed the meat from the sandwiches. He wondered if the creature would eat these too. Fish and meat is almost the same, right?

He grabbed a piece of meat and turned his gaze back to the water only to get scared half to death by the monster. It now had its head poked out of the water and was looking at him curiously.

Zoro calmed himself down as looked at the creature. He now could clearly see its features. It really looked like a male teen who was not much younger than him. It had short black hair and big round eyes with a small scar below one of them. He could see a little bit of the creature's teeth as its mouth was slightly opened.

Zoro didn't really know what to do. Should he speak? He wasn't even sure if the creature could talk, or understand English.

He slowly moved to the edge of the rock. He moved his hand with the piece of meat in the direction of the creature.

"Do.. do you want some food?" He asked softly. The monster looked at him. It seemed a bit confused by the other's movements. "You're a predator, right? How about some meat?" Zoro asked the creature again.

The creature watched Zoro as it made its way towards the outstretched arm. Zoro knew this could end up really bad. The monster only had to grab his arm to pull him into the lake. He had his swords with him, but he didn't know if those would help in a fight against something that lived in water.

His movements were risky, he knew. But if he wanted to win the creature's trust he needed to take some risks.

He watched as a hand submerged from the water and moved towards his own. He now could see the sharp nails on each finger and the webbing in between them. The hand didn't feel slimy, like he expected it to be, as it touched him.

The creature grabbed the piece of meat and retreated its hand. It sniffed at the meat before taking it in its mouth. Zoro watched as the creature chewed on the small piece of meat.

Unlike before, the monster didn't spit the food out. Instead, it swallowed the piece of meat and looked expectantly at the man on the rock.

"Do you want more?" Zoro asked. The creature nodded. The man's lips twisted into a small smile. It _did _understand him. It reacted to his question, so it must have known what he said.__

____

____

The man took another piece of meat from his basket and reached his hand back at the creature. It took the meat immediately out of his hand and put it in its mouth.

Zoro watched the creature in fascination. He really wondered what it was. He had never seen or heard of such a creature. If he didn't know better he'd say it was some kind of merman. But those don't exist, right?

Some splashing of the water pulled him out of his thoughts and back into the real world. He turned his eyes back to the creature in the water. It was still looking at him with that questioning look in its eyes.

He grabbed the last piece of meat and once again moved his hand in the direction of the creature. The monster grabbed it quickly, but dropped it in its greed. The creature dove underwater and submerged after a few seconds with the piece of meat dangling from its mouth.

"That was the last piece I had." Zoro said to the creature as it chewed on the meat. The monster swallowed what he had in its mouth and looked at Zoro with sad eyes and.. was that a pout?

"Sorry." The man said before looking at the sky. It seemed to be late afternoon. How long had he been there?

"I have to go. See you next time." Zoro said before standing up. He brushed off his pants and grabbed his stuff. He was halfway to his car when a voice caught his attention.

"Thanks for the food!"

Zoro turned around quickly to see where that came from, but was met with silence. There was nobody there. The creature was gone too, the only remainder of it being small waves in the water on the place it had been just seconds ago.

Had the monster just spoken to him? It must have. There wasn't anyone else around who could have said something to him. He stared at the lake for a few more seconds before turning around and walking the last few meters to his car.

* * *

On his way back to Kuina Zoro started thinking about what he was going to do. His first thoughts had been to win the creatures trust, capture the monster and collect its bounty. Now, he wasn't sure anymore.

The creature didn't act hostile to him, like the bartender had told him. And it didn't look frightening either. It looked more like an innocent teen in his eyes. No matter how much he thought about it, he couldn't imagine this creature to be evil.

He kind of felt bad for thinking about handing the creature over to the people of the town. Who knows what they'll do with it. He didn't know why, but he didn't want the creature to get hurt.

Not only that, but he also found himself enjoying the creature's presence. He wanted to know more about the creature, like what it was, where it came from.

Its name.

Zoro hated the thought of having to ruin someones life for the sake of his own. But maybe he could convince the people from that town to just let the monster go after he brought it to them. An other option was trying to find an other way to get money for Kuina's treatment. The chance of finding a way to get money they hadn't tried already was very slim though.

Well, he would think about this later. Right now, he was hungry. He wanted to go home and eat something and go to sleep. He will think of what to do tomorrow.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoyed reading this chapter!


	3. Chapter 3

It was the next morning and Zoro and his sister were having breakfast. Suddenly, Kuina spoke up. "Can we go to town today?" She asked. Zoro looked up from his plate.

"Sure. Which town do you want to go?" He asked. "The one with the big library. I don't remember the name." She answered. He nodded. He knew which town she meant. It was a little bit farther than the one near East Blue Lake.

"Why do you want to go to the library? Don't you have enough books?" Zoro questioned. The woman smiled. "Unfortunately not. You know I'm a fast reader. I finished my last book yesterday and now I need new ones." She said. "I know you're not a real fan of libraries. You can just drop me off and go somewhere else."

"You sure you'll be fine on your own?" The man asked. He was slightly worried about his sister. She had randomly collapsed a few times in the last months and he really didn't want to risk not being there for her if it happens again.

Kuina rolled her eyes, knowing very well what her brother was thinking. "I can handle it, Zoro. I'll call you if something happens or if I need help with something." She said. The man sighed. "Alright, fine."

* * *

After he dropped Kuina off at the library she wanted to go to, Zoro drove to East Blue Lake. He now was fully prepared thanks to the experience of the previous day. He now not only had food for himself, he had a lot of meat with him as well.

He was determined to learn more about the creature. Maybe he could have a conversation with it. Maybe he could finally give it a name. Calling it 'it' or 'the creature' all the time was starting to annoy him.

He parked his car on the usual spot and walked to the lake. He once again settled down on the big rock near the water. In the two days that had passed, this rock had become his spot.

He settled down on the big stone and watched the lake for any sign of the creature. He found none. The monster probably didn't know he was here yet. He had to think of a way to attract the creature's attention.

After a good minute of thinking, Zoro settled on one idea. He bent down over the edge of the rock and reached his arm to the water. His hand entered the water, which was surprisingly cold, and moved his hand around in the liquid.

He splashed around, making small waves and, hopefully, enough noise to get the creature's attention. After a while, he pulled back his hand and started at the lake for any sign of the monster.

Sure enough, not five minutes had passed before the creature popped up out of the water in front of the rock. Apparently, Zoro's way of trying to get the monster's attention had worked.

The two stared at each other for some time before Zoro decided to grab his basket with food. The creature's eyes followed all his movements. It now knew there was food in the basket.

The man rummaged in the basket for a bit. He then found what he was looking for. He took out several kinds of meat. He placed them next to him on the rock and returned the basket to its previous place.

"I got some more food for you, like yesterday." He said to the monster. The creature didn't say anything. It just swam closer to the rock and stared at Zoro with anticipation.

The man looked at the different kinds of meat next to him. He didn't really know what kinds of meat the creature liked, so he took all of it. It was all just raw meat, but he didn't think the creature would mind. It looked half animal after all.

He grabbed a piece of raw meat and reached it out to the creature. The monster didn't even hesitate as it moved its hand to grab it. It didn't take long for the piece of meat to be consumed completely.

Zoro fed the creature two more pieces. He then grabbed a fourth piece in his hand, but didn't make any movement to the monster in the water. The creature was already raising its hand out of the water to take the next piece, but Zoro interrupted with his voice.

"Wait." The man said. The creature stared at him with a betrayed look on its face as it slowly withdrew its hand. It was probably wondering why the man hadn't given the meat yet.

"Before I give you more food, I want you to answer a question for me." Zoro said. He looked at the creature for its reaction, but was met with a blank look. "Was it you who called out to me yesterday?" Zoro asked.

At first, he got no reaction at all. Then, after about ten or fifteen seconds, he got his reply in the form of a small nod. The man smiled and reached his hand with the meat down towards the monster.

The creature stared at him a few seconds longer before taking the meat from the man's outstretched hand and consumed it.

"So you _can _talk. Good to know." Zoro said. It was a little bit strange that the creature had just simply nodded instead of speaking. Maybe it was afraid to talk now Zoro was so close to the creature.__

____

__

He grabbed a new piece of meat in his hand. The creature stared at him, probably wondering if the man was going to ask more or if the man was going to give it to him anyway.

"What's your name?" He asked. This time he got no reply. Did the creature even have a name? Zoro gave a small sigh. He handed the meat over to the creature and watched as it ate.

Zoro's plan still was to 'befriend' the creature, to win its trust, before handing it over to the town's people. The best way to do that was to get to know the creature and to let the creature know who _he _was.__

____

____

"I don't know if you want to know, but my name is Zoro." The man said. The creature didn't say anything, but the look on its face said that it had heard him and understood what he had said.

Zoro spent the rest of his time giving the remaining pieces of meat to the creature. He told a few more things about himself as he did this. It were small things, like his age and where he came from. Almost an hour had passed when he realized that there was only one piece of meat left.

"This is the last one." The man said as he handed a rather big piece over to the monster in the water. "If you're smart you don't eat it all in one go and try to- and its gone.." He sighed as he watched the creature swallow the meat whole.

"Seriously, don't you have to chew first? You'll get a stomach ache if you do that with all your food." Zoro stated. The creature giggled with a big smile on its face. The man smiled as well.

He still had some time left here by the lake. He didn't really know what else he could do here though. He decided to ask the creature about it even though it probably wouldn't respond.

"Hey, do you know anything to do around here?" He asked. The creature blinked a few times before putting its hand in its chin and started thinking. It kept thinking.. and thinking.. and thinking. Its head started to become red. At this rate, the creature would develop a fever.

"Hey, no need to think so hard." Zoro said quickly. The creature opened its eyes again and looked at him. It probably didn't know anything else to do except swimming around in the lake.

Zoro didn't really feel like swimming right now. He still was kind of wary of the monster as well. He didn't know the creature very well and he didn't want to risk getting attacked in the water.

"I guess I'll just sit here for the remaining time." The man said. The creature just stared at him. Maybe he could try one last time to get the creature to talk to him. If he talked, maybe the creature would talk as well.

"I'm on a sort of vacation here." Zoro started. "Me and my sister moved here temporarily because of some things that happened. I don't know when we'll go back again, but we will eventually.

My sister owns a dojo. She teaches other people swordsmanship." He told the creature. He grabbed one of his sword. Wado Ichimonji, his most precious sword. The sword his sister had given him.

He took the sword out of its sheath and showed it to the creature. The monster backed up a little at first, but when it didn't see any kind of danger, it came closer to take a look at the sword.

"This is Wado, one of my swords. I have three of them. I use santoryu, three swords style." The creature's eyes lit up slightly as he said this. The monster probably found it cool he used three swords instead of only one.

Zoro talked some more about his life. He talked about important and unimportant things. He left out the part of his sister getting ill. He had no idea why he was telling this creature all this. It just felt.. right.

After a while he ran out of things to say. A one-sided conversation isn't as easy as it seems. He fell silent and stared at the lake. He then felt his phone vibrate and he took it out of his pocket.

Kuina had sent him a message saying that she was done in the library and that he could come pick her up. He replied with an 'Okay' before putting his phone back in his pocket. He looked back at the monster.

"I have to go. I'll probably be back tomorrow."

He started to grab his things when, suddenly, a soft voice spoke up.

"Luffy."

Zoro's head snapped up. He looked around, but the only ones there were he and the creature. He looked down at the monster in disbelieve. "What..?"

"My name. It's Luffy." The creature, now known as Luffy, said.

Zoro just stared at the creature. Had he heard that right? Did it really just speak to him? Then, when realization fully hit him, a small smile appeared on his face.

"Nice to meet you, Luffy."

* * *

Kuina rummaged through the cubboards and the fridge as she searched for food to use for dinner. She had found all but one thing.

"Zoro, where did all the meat go?" She asked her brother. Zoro froze. He totally forgot to buy more meat. Had he really used all of it? What was he going to tell her? He couldn't tell the truth yet.

"I forgot to buy it?" He said, though it sounded more like a question. The woman turned around and put her hands on her hips, looking at him sternly.

"You went to the store two days ago and I know you bought meat there because I checked if you bought everything on the shopping list. There's no way we used all of it in two days. Tell me what you did with it."

Zoro was trying to come up with something, but his brain couldn't think of a good reason why all the meat was gone.

"I.. I gave it to a stray dog." He finally said. "Zoro, you don't like dogs." Kuina pointed out. The man stayed quiet. Kuina stared at him for a few more seconds before sighing.

"Next time, just buy new meat when you do something stupid with it. Now, go to town to get meat for tonight." She said. Zoro nodded and went to grab his jacket. He was about to leave when Kuina spoke to him again.

"Oh, and Zoro? You can buy some meat for that stray dog of yours as well for when you see it again." She said with a small wink. The man smiled and left the house.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading. I hope you enjoyed this chapter!


	4. Chapter 4

Zoro parked his car on the usual spot near the lake. He grabbed his stuff and walked to the large stone near the water. He sat down and put his things aside. The sky was clear of any clouds and the sun felt hot on his skin. What a nice day to be outside.

It was the following day and Zoro once again was at the East Blue Lake. Yesterday, when he went to the store to buy some meat for dinner, he had also bought some meat for Luffy, the creature in the water. He hadn't really bothered looking at what kinds of meat he bought, he had the feeling the monster would eat it anyway.

The man reached his hand down to the water and splashed the cold liquid around for a bit. He then retreated his arm and shook the water off his hand. Now he just had to wait for the creature to come.

Not a minute had passed before the creature appeared above the surface. Luffy, who was a male like Zoro suspected (He had asked about it the previous day just before he left because he _had _to know. It had been really awkward..), probably had seen him coming down the mountain with his car and had already been close to the rock when Zoro arrived. The monster smiled and greeted him friendly.__

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__

"Hey Zoro. You're back!" The creature said happily. Zoro greeted him back. "Hello Luffy, how are you doing?" The man asked. "I'm doing fine, just bored." The monster replied. The creature was already a lot more talkative than the previous days.

"Bored huh? Then, how about we talk about some stuff? That should cure the boredom." Zoro suggested. The man hoped the monster would say yes. If not, he could always bribe him with meat. That didn't seem necessary because Luffy apparently thought it was a good idea.

"Alright, what should we talk about?" The creature asked. The man on the rock already knew the answer. "Can you tell me about yourself? Like, what are you, how old are you and where did you come from?"

Luffy smiled. "I am a merman, or sharkman. Whatever you want to call it. " He said and lifted his tail a little bit out of the water for Zoro to see. The other man had never heard of 'sharkmen' before.

The creature then thought for a little while before speaking again. "Now you mention it, how old am I? I'm not really sure. I might be sixteen or seventeen, I don't know." He said. "Wait, what date is it?" The creature asked.

Zoro, who was a little bit shocked that Luffy didn't know his age, grabbed his phone and turned it on. Luffy looked at the device with confusion, probably wondering what it was. The date was displayed on the screen in big letters and numbers. He showed the monster the screen before realizing that he didn't even know if the creature could read.

Apparently, Luffy _could _read because after staring at the screen for about ten seconds he frowned and spoke up. "So, eleven years have passed then.." The teen's voice was soft and barely audible. Zoro put his phone back in his pocket and looked at the creature for an answer on his earlier question.__

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"Well, apparently I'm older than I thought. I just turned eighteen." Luffy answered. 'So he's only two years younger than me.' Zoro thought.

"And to answer your other question, I came from the ocean." The creature said. The other's eyes widen at that. The ocean was miles away from here! How did Luffy get to this lake?

The man voiced his thoughts. As he asked this, he saw the monster's smile vanish. The creature sighed.

"I never wanted to come to this place. Before I came here, I had only _heard _of the world outside the ocean. To put a long story short, I was taken from my home. Humans captured me. They took me with them in a weird machine thing like that." He pointed at Zoro's car. "I somehow managed to get out of the machine and crawl away. Then, I tumbled down the hill and landed near the water here." Luffy explained.__

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"I lost track of time after a while, but apparently I've been living here for eleven years now. Other than animals, you are the first living being I had a real conversation with since then." The teen said.

Zoro calculated in his head and came to a somewhat shocking conclusion. "You have been here for eleven years, so you were captured when you were only seven?" A nod from the other confirmed it.

The older man cursed under his breath. Eleven year is a long time to be alone, especially for a kid. He himself liked peace and quiet, but eleven year is too much, even for him. He wondered how Luffy hadn't gone crazy yet.

Zoro didn't really want to continue with this subject, but he now was curious about Luffy's home. Not here in the lake, but his home in the ocean. Did the teen have family there? Friends?

"Do you have friends and family at home?" He asked. Luffy nodded. "I do. I have two big brothers. They're really cool! I also have a grandpa, but he isn't nice at all." The monster cringed at the thought of his grandfather. "I don't have many friends, only three, but they're awesome!" Luffy told the other man.

"I wonder how they're doing. I miss them.." Luffy said, a sad smile on his face.

Zoro stared at the teen in the water. Although he had expected that the creature wasn't from around here, the story he had been told shocked him. Luffy had been taken from his home only to spent the following eleven years in a place he didn't know, all alone. This once again proved that humans could be horrible beings.

Not that he was any better than the ones who captured Luffy. Zoro was here to capture the creature, to trade him for money. The teen would have to go through all that again only because he was worth a lot of money.

Zoro now felt like a horrible person himself.

Deciding to finally change the subject, the man on land asked a new, unrelated, question. "So, what's your favourite food?" He asked. Luffy looked up at him. "Well, there isn't much to eat around here other than fish, but I really liked the meat you brought with you the other day." He answered with a smile.

That reminded Zoro of the food in his basket. He reached his hand over to the food-filled basket and placed it on his lap. He grabbed a small package and removed the plastic around the meat.

"You mean this?" He said while waving the piece of meat in front of Luffy. The creature stared at his hand, almost drooling at the sight of the meat. He looked past the hand to Zoro, silently asking permission to grab the meat. The man nodded at the monster. Luffy didn't hesitate and grabbed the piece of meat, eating it in one go.

"You know, there is a thing called 'chewing'. It's a thing you do with your teeth before swallowing food." Zoro said with a smirk. Luffy grinned.

The older man gave the other a few more pieces of meat. As much as he wanted to stay here all day, he knew he couldn't. Not today. He and Kuina were expecting a visit from their doctor that evening.

The doctor was a good friend of Zoro. His name was Chopper and he was three years younger than him. Even though the teen still went to school, he already had the authority to help people with his medical skills. He couldn't do surgeries and other big things, but other than that he was a really good doctor.

Chopper wasn't the one who had diagnosed Kuina's sickness or the one who had guided her with the progress of her sickness, but he still wanted to check up on her once in a while.

Since they now were so far from the city they lived in, they had told Chopper he didn't need to visit them so often anymore. The teen agreed, but had insisted that he would come to them the first week. He and a friend were going on a vacation near Zoro and Kuina's temporally home, so it wouldn't be a problem for him to visit.

Zoro looked at his phone. It was about time to leave. He could continue his conversation with Luffy the next day.

"Hey, I have to leave. I will see you tomorrow." He said as he started to pack his stuff. "So soon? You just got here. Can't you stay a little longer?" The creature asked, a pout on his face.

"I'm sorry, Luffy. I really have to go. Tomorrow I will stay longer, I promise." He told the teen. The monster sighed. "Okay, see you tomorrow then.."

* * *

Zoro arrived just in time to see an other car pull up on the driveway. He parked next to the other car and got out. He walked over to the car next to his and greeted the passengers as they exited their car.

"Hello Chopper. I see you and your friends have arrived. How are you doing?" Zoro asked. "I'm doing fine, thanks." The doctor replied. He then gestured to his friend. "This is my friend Usopp." He said. The other man, Usopp, greeted Zoro with a handshake.

They entered the house. Kuina was in the garden reading a book. She looked up from her book when she heard the door open. She walked into the house and greeted the three men inside.

After Chopper had examined Kuina and asked her all kinds of questions about how she was feeling, the four of them talked some more about normal things before they had dinner. The two guests would be leaving after supper because they wanted to arrive at their hotel early.

When the two had left, Zoro grabbed his laptop and turned it on. Kuina was on the couch watching television.

The man clicked on the search bar and typed his request. All kinds of sites popped up on screen.

Zoro was looking for information about mermen, like Luffy called himself. However, he couldn't find much information at all. Most were just made-up stories while others were vague descriptions and photos of what people said were mermaids or mermen.

There were even some documentaries of 'experts' searching for these creatures. It all looked really fake though.

Was there really nothing helpful to find about mermen? Is that because the species is so good at hiding that no one ever found them or for other reasons?

Either way, he wasn't going to find anything useful on the internet. He then opened his writing program. He typed down everything he had discovered about Luffy. He didn't want to forget anything.

He finished and turned off his laptop. He then joined his sister on the couch to watch some television. It was already late in the evening. Zoro started to slowly fall asleep on the couch.

"If you're going to fall asleep, do that in your bed." His sister commented. Parhaps that was a good idea..

"Fine, I'll see you tomorrow. Goodnight." Zoro yawned and left to go upstairs. "Goodnight." Kuina replied. She then continued to watch the movie while wondering what Zoro had been typing on his laptop.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading :)


	5. Chapter 5

"Zoro?"

"Yeah?" Zoro looked in Luffy's direction while taking a sip of his bottle of water. He was once again sitting on his spot on the rock. He had arrived only an hour ago and he and the merman were eating and talking about random subjects.

"Do you like the ocean?" The teen asked. The other man raised an eyebrow at the random question. "I do. Why did you want to know?"

Luffy shrugged. "I just wanted to know if you did. Maybe we can go there together sometime, when I get out of here." He said before taking another bite of the piece of meat in his hand.

"Maybe." Zoro repeated. He had known Luffy for a little more than a week now and they had already become really good friends. Every passing day Zoro began to feel more and more guilty. It wouldn't be long before he had to crush this friendship by betraying Luffy.

He really didn't want to. He was still hoping for that one miracle that would somehow cure Kuina or give them enough money for treatment. However, he knew he couldn't wait too long on something that probably won't happen. Right now, Luffy's bounty was the only thing that could possibly safe his sister.

A comfortable silence settled between them as they continued their meal. It wasn't uncommon for them to sit in silence. There just wasn't enough to talk about because they already talked about most things. Other than talking, the only thing they could do was play games and playing games all the time was getting boring. Well, Zoro thought so at least.

"Let's play a game!" Luffy said with excitement. The older man groaned. "Again? We just quit playing one ten minutes ago." He said. The creature grinned.

"I spy with my little eye something beginning with.. T!"

Zoro sighed. "Tree." He answered. Luffy stared at him in disbelief. "How did you know?!" He asked. "Because you're staring at one." The teen looked away from the tree. "I'm not supposed to do that?" Zoro face-palmed. "No, and I told you that last time as well." Luffy wasn't exactly the smartest person he'd ever met. Not that Zoro cared. He himself wasn't always that bright either.

"Oh okay. Now it's your turn!" Luffy said. The other man didn't really like playing this game, but looked around anyway. "I spy with my little eye something beginning with S." This shouldn't be too hard for the teen.

"Stone?"

"No."

"Shoe?"

"No."

"Grass?"

"Doesn't even begin with S."

"Fish?"

"..."

"Water?"

"Now you're not even trying.."

Luffy groaned in annoyance and leaned back in the water, his face facing the sky. His eyes widen. "Sky!" He yelled. Zoro nodded. "That wasn't that hard, was it?" The merman smiled, happy with his victory.

The teen was about to start another round when, suddenly, both of them jumped at the sound of a car driving down the mountain. The car was still too far to see them, but it wouldn't take long for the vehicle to arrive here.

The two looked at each other. What should they do?

"Luffy, you go hide in the water somewhere. Don't come out until I give the sign." Zoro told the other. "What sign-" The older man interrupted the creature. "Just go already!" Luffy nodded and vanished underwater.

Less than a minute later the car arrived at the lake. The driver parked it next to Zoro's and got out. It was a man who seemed to be in his late forties. The man slammed the car door shut and locked it. He then walked in Zoro's direction.

The man came to a stop next to the rock Zoro was sitting on. He greeted the other man with a simple 'Hello' before staring at the lake. They didn't say anything to each other for a while before the green-haired man finally spoke up.

"What brings you here to this lake?" Zoro asked. The man looked at him. "Well, I heard there lives a monster here with a big bounty on its head." He said. "I'm guessing you're here to take down the monster as well, judging from the swords you carry with you."

Zoro nodded. "That's right. I need the money. I haven't seen anything yet though." He said. Of course he had seen the creature, but he wasn't going to tell someone else that. This man was here to capture Luffy as well and he really didn't want to help the man with that by giving him useful information.

"Ah, a competitor. I see." The man said. He then stuck out his hand. "I'm Charlie by the way. Nice to meet you." The other man accepted the handshake. "I'm Zoro."

"Do you mind if I sit here for a while?" The man, Charlie, asked. Zoro shook his head and the other man took place on the rock next to Zoro. Charlie's eyes then fell on the basket standing next to the other man. He grabbed it without asking and looked into it. Kinda rude if you'd ask Zoro.

Charlie rummaged through the basket for a few seconds before taking out a piece of meat still wrapped in plastic. "What's this for? Bait?" He asked. Zoro nodded because he couldn't think of any other explanation for why there was raw meat in the basket. He almost immediately regretted it.

He cursed himself for letting that man look in the basket _and _for confirming the meat was bait. What if the man threw it in the water? Luffy would most certainly come to get it.__

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"I see there are a lot of empty meat packages here. I'm assuming it didn't work?" Charlie asked. Zoro shook his head. "It didn't. I haven't seen anything yet. Only fish seem to like it." He said. He hoped that the man wasn't going to throw it in anyway.

"Have you tried other bait?" Charlie asked as he unwrapped the plastic from the meat. Once the plastic was gone he poked at the meat and sniffed it. What a weird guy.

"I've tried different kinds of meat, but nothing else." Zoro answered. He was starting at the meat in the other man's hands nervously. What was he going to do with it? Charlie stopped sniffing at the meat. "Well, the meat is still fresh, so that isn't the problem." He said. He then threw the piece of meat in the water, much to Zoro's horror.

_Shit. ___

* * *

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Luffy was somewhere in the middle of the lake. He was far below the surface. He couldn't see what was happening on land. He was curious, but he knew he couldn't go take a look. Zoro had told him to hide for now, so that's what he did.

He wondered who it was. Was it a person who wanted to kill him? It wouldn't surprise him. A lot of people seem to want to kill him for some reason. Maybe he should ask Zoro about it. Maybe he knew why.

He stayed in the same place for several minutes. He watched as fish and other animals swam past him. Some were even nibbling at his tail. He shook his tail to get rid of them. It didn't really work as the fish returned to his tail. They always did that. He wondered why. Did he taste good or something?

He suddenly felt the water vibrate as something hit the water. It came from the direction of the rock where Zoro always sat on. Slowly, the smell of meat began to fill his senses. He was half shark and could smell the blood coming from the raw meat really well in the water.

He swam towards the rock, almost drooling at the thought of meat. Meat was amazing! It was so good he could keep eating it all day long. It was so much better than fish! Okay, he really had to stop thinking about meat now..

He stopped dead in his tracks. He remembered Zoro had told him to stay away until he gave the sign. He couldn't go to the meat now!

But maybe the meat _was _the sign!__

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How was he supposed to know what the sign was? He expected Zoro to make small waves in the water with his hands to tell him to come to the rock, like he usually did. But maybe he had changed it? All the thinking was making his head hurt. He finally decided to go for the meat. And if it wasn't the sign he could always snatch the meat and get out of there.

With his mind made up he began to swim towards the piece of meat. It had already sunk to the bottom of the lake. When Luffy came close enough, he could see that there was someone else sitting next to Zoro. It had to be the person who arrived not long ago.

Luffy wanted to swim away again, but he also wanted the meat. He didn't want to get seen, _but he also wanted the meat! _What to do now?__

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He looked back and forth between the piece of meat and the safety of the deep water behind him. He then made a decision. He would grab the meat and get the heck out of there. Hopefully he wouldn't be seen.

* * *

Charlie kept on talking to Zoro for several minutes. Zoro didn't like it at all. He wanted the man to go away already!

Movement in the water then caught his eye. He looked at the water and saw a large object move towards the meat at high-speed. It had to be Luffy. The creature closed the distance between him and the piece of meat. He grabbed the food and swam away as quickly as he had come. Zoro held his breath. He hoped the other man hadn't seen this.

"Did you see that?!" Charlie exclaimed. Zoro's eyes widen. Charlie had seen him! _What now? ___

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"That must be the monster! Did you see the size of that thing? It was huge!" The man yelled out. The other man didn't like it when Charlie called his friend a 'thing', but he didn't say anything.

"Amazing! So it _does _exist! I was beginning to doubt its existence when you said you hadn't seen it yet. Man, what a relief. I didn't buy my supplies for nothing." The man said, a big smile on his face.__

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"Supplies?" Zoro asked. He really didn't like the sound of that. The man laughed. "Yes, supplies! How would I catch that monster otherwise?" He said. Zoro shrugged, but in his mind, he was panicking.

What was the man going to use to try to catch Luffy? Was he going to hurt the teen? And if he caught him, what would happen to him next? He really didn't want Luffy to get hurt. Sure, he needed to catch Luffy eventually, but he wasn't going to do it the violent way.

"I should be going. I need to prepare. I wish you luck with catching that monster before me. See ya!" Charly said as he stood up. He walked to his car and got in. The engine started and the car drove up the mountain again.

Zoro waited several minutes after he couldn't hear the car anymore, just to be sure the man didn't get back. He then put his hand in the water and moved it around to create small waves to call Luffy.

The merman appeared not long after that. Zoro started at him for a few seconds before speaking.

"He saw you." He said. "He said he is going to catch you." Luffy stared at him, a frown on his face. "I can deal with that. It wouldn't be the first time someone tried to do that." He said.

Zoro remembered the reason of the high bounty. All the people who have been killed by 'the monster'. He had always wondered if Luffy was able to kill someone because Zoro certainly didn't see the teen do it.

He knew he couldn't stay here all the time to keep an eye out for any possible danger that could take Luffy's life. He had to go home and be with Kuina too. If Charlie or any other person came here when he was away, he couldn't interfere.

"Please, be careful the next few days." Zoro said. Luffy looked at him before smiling. "Of course! I'm always careful!" He said. The other man doubted that Luffy was always careful. He had only known the creature for a few days, but he already knew Luffy was a person who swam head first into danger.

"Just.. don't die okay?" He said. Luffy grinned. "Why would I die? I'm really strong! Besides, I can't leave you alone when you're here. You're my best friend!" The teen exclaimed.

Best friend?

Zoro never had a best friend before.

He smiled. "Alright, I trust you." He said. "Now, what were we doing before we were interrupted?" Zoro asked. Luffy grinned.

"I spy with my little eye something beginning with.. W!"

"Water."

"How?!"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hate putting in OC's, so Charlie won't stay for too long.  
> I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Thank you for reading!


	6. Chapter 6

Three days had passed since that weird guy came to the lake. Neither Luffy or Zoro had seen him since, but both had the feeling that was going to change soon.

It was night. The sky was clear of any clouds and the stars and moon shone brightly. It was almost full moon and it reflected on the water. It was a peaceful night, just like always. But for some reason, Luffy couldn't sleep.

The merman leaned, half submerged in the water, on a large rock that was partly sticking out of the lake. Luffy often hang out by this rock. It was a good place to rest on if he wanted to stay out of the water for a while. He often did that on sunny days. He enjoyed feeling the sun on his skin.

But now it was night. The sun had vanished and the temperature outside the water was colder than in the water. So why was he lying there?

He was thinking. He was so deep in thought that he didn't even notice the cold. The merman thought about all kinds of things as he watched the stars. On nights like these, when he couldn't sleep, he would go to this spot and just stare at the sky and think about things until he fell asleep.

One of the things going through his mind right now was Zoro. Or rather, Zoro's absence. The man always went home at the end of the afternoon, today too. Luffy was always left alone at night. Of course, he was used to this. He had spent many years alone after all.

But now, every time when Zoro left, it felt like the loneliness hit him harder. He was finally getting used to spending time with someone again, even if it was only for a few hours a day. But the downside to this was that, at night, he started to miss Zoro's company.

He missed not only Zoro, but everyone else he knew as well. His brothers, his friends, even his grandpa.

He had the same problem when he first arrived here eleven years ago. He had been, and still is, desperate to get back to his family. He wanted to be with them, but he had no idea where they were. He had no idea where _he _was. He missed his family and friends, but that wasn't the only reason why he wanted to be with them.__

____

He was alone. And being alone hurts.

It had been very hard the first year. He had no one to talk to, no one to play with, no one to keep him company. After a long time he finally got used to it, but that didn't mean that he didn't miss everyone anymore. It just meant that he could cope with the loneliness.

Now, he _had _someone to talk with. When Zoro was here, the merman forgot the feeling of loneliness. He really enjoyed the other man's company. Zoro was his friend! But every time Zoro left, the silence returned.__

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In those eleven years alone he had forgotten how it felt to have company. But now Zoro was here! Zoro came here every day and stayed with him for hours. The man had made him remember the feeling of having someone close to you. And when the man left, he missed that feeling. Badly.

He knew he shouldn't complain. At least there _was _someone to talk to, even if it was only for a couple of hours. He wasn't completely alone anymore!  
But still, at night the feeling of loneliness returned.__

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The creature sighed. There was no use in thinking about this. He couldn't force Zoro to stay with him day and night. The man had other places to be!

Suddenly, Luffy was snapped out of his thoughts by a loud noise. He looked around but everything was still the same. Then, he spotted lights moving down the mountain. The merman frowned and moved off the rock, submerging almost completely in the water. Only his head was above the surface.

The sound got louder and the lights brighter. Then, finally, he could see the cause of it. A machine-thing was going down the mountain. _A car _he had learned from Zoro. The car moved down the path until it reached the lake. It wasn't Zoro's car, he noticed. It had an other colour and shape.__

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Realization hit him as the driver exited the car. It was that man again! This was the man he had seen sitting next to Zoro a few days ago when he went to take the piece of meat that had fallen into the water. The man opened the back of his car and took out some large bags.

Luffy narrowed his eyes. What was the man going to do?

* * *

Something was wrong. Zoro was driving towards East Blue Lake when he suddenly got that feeling. He had no idea why he had that feeling. Unconsciously, he started driving faster. He was nearing the path down the mountain.

As he drove down the mountain, he could see small bits of the lake through the trees. Nothing seemed to be wrong. So why did he have this feeling?

His question was answered when he finally arrived at the lake. The first thing he saw was the car of the man, Charlie, who visited this place a few days ago. His heart started beating faster as a sense of fear filled him. Had the man succeed in capturing, or even killing, his friend?

The second thing he noticed was Luffy's presence. In the short time he had known the merman, Zoro had never seen the creature already visible when he arrived. He always had to call him out first. He wanted to sigh in relief that Luffy was okay, but he couldn't.

Because the third thing he noticed was a body.

He parked his car next to the Charlie's and got out as fast as he could. He didn't go to his usual spot on the rock. Instead, he ran to the side of the lake where both Luffy and the body were. The water at this side of the lake was really shallow, unlike the water near the rock. The rock was situated at a deep side of the lake.

When he got close enough, he could see that the person lying face-down, half submerged in the water was Charlie. Luffy stared at him from his place in the water a few meters away from the other two. Zoro knelt down next to the man and turned him onto his back. His eyes widen in horror.

Charlie looked like he had been mauled by a bear or some other kind of wild animal. There were cuts and bite wounds all over his body. His right leg looked twisted and was most likely broken in more than one place. A large puddle of blood had formed underneath the man and Charlie himself was deadly pale.

Zoro put his fingers on the man's neck. He felt no pulse. He checked some other places for any sign of a heartbeat, but couldn't find any. The man wasn't breathing either. He was dead. The man probably bled to death judging from all the blood. He must have died a while ago as all the blood had dried up and the man's body was becoming stiff.

The man tore his eyes off the dead body in front of him and looked at Luffy. The merman had an unreadable look on his face as he stared at the body. The teen was injured, but not as bad as the dead man. Zoro could only see a few cuts on the merman's body. He couldn't see all the damage as half of the creature's body was submerged in the water.

Judging from the blood near Luffy's mouth and the bite marks on the body, the sharkman was the one who attacked Charlie. The creature looked up from the body and looked at him. Something that looked like guilt became visible in the merman's dark eyes.

"I didn't mean to kill him. I really didn't.." Luffy said quietly. His eyes spoke only truth. Zoro believed him. He knew Luffy wouldn't hurt anyone unless there was a good reason for it.

"It's fine." Zoro said. It really wasn't. Killing someone wasn't fine at all! But he knew what the man's intentions had been. Luffy's actions must have been mostly self-defence. He couldn't blame Luffy for fighting against someone who wanted to do something bad to him.

"Are you alright?" He asked the teen. The merman nodded. "I'm fine, aside from a few cuts and bruises." He responded. "But I'm kinda stuck right now." Luffy said. He tugged at something under the surface that looked like a net. "I can't get my tail lose from this thing. It's stuck to something on the bottom as well, so I can't move much at all."

_That _could be a problem. Zoro's plan was to ask someone in the nearest village what to do with the dead man, but if he took someone down to the lake Luffy had to be out of sight. So that meant that he had to go into the water and get Luffy lose from the net.__

____

____

It wasn't like he was still afraid of getting near the creature. He trusted Luffy, he really did. But seeing what the teen was really capable of made him realize that he was dealing with something a lot stronger than a human. If something _did _go wrong..__

____

____

"You really can't get lose?" Zoro asked to be sure. The merman shook his head. "I've tried biting and pulling it, but nothing works." He said. The other man sighed and got up. "I'll be right back." He said as he walked to his car. He opened the door of his vehicle and took his swords from the passenger's seat. Zoro then returned to the lake.

Luffy looked at the swords with a hint of fear as the other took his shoes off. Zoro caught his stare. "I'm going to try to cut the net with one of my swords." He explained. The creature didn't reply but his body seem to relax a little bit.

Once Zoro had taken off his clothes, only wearing his pants, he grabbed one of his swords and set the first step into the lake. The water felt cold on his skin as he entered the water. Luffy was only a few meters away from the shore. The man slowly closed the distance between him and the creature.

Finally he was next to the teen. He had never been this close to the other. The water wasn't that high yet, only to his middle. Luffy was submerged to his shoulders. The water was clear and Zoro could clearly see the long shark-like tail attached to his friend. The end of the tail was tangled in a net.

Zoro bent down, grabbed a piece of the net and pulled at it. The net wasn't made with only rope. There appeared to be iron wire braided into the rope, making the creature unable to break it by himself. The net was cutting into the tail at some places. It probably hurts judging from the way Luffy bit his lip in pain when Zoro pulled at the net.

Zoro unsheathed his sword and got down in the water. It would be best to get the net unstuck from the ground first. The man took a deep breath and then submerged himself underwater.

At first Zoro couldn't find where the net was stuck, but after a short while he found the problem. Part of the net was tangled with an old branch that sticking out of the ground. With a quick movement of his sword Zoro managed to cut the branch off.

The man broke the surface and took a gulp of air. Luffy moved his tail slightly to feel if he was completely detached from the ground. Luckily he was. Now they only had to remove the net from the tail.

"Can you lift your tail slightly out of the water? It would be easier for me to get rid of the net when I'm handling above the water." Zoro said. The merman nodded. The teen dove under and grabbed the ground so he had some support. He then lifted his tail as far as he could out of the water.

Zoro watched as the bight red tail broke the surface of the water. The merman did a good job at keeping it high enough for the other to be able to do his work. The older man had to be careful because he didn't want to accidentally hurt his friend.

The net was really stuck to the tail. It made Zoro wonder what Luffy had done to get _this _tangled. While he was working, he couldn't help but occasionally touch the tail. He had expected it to feel slimy, but it actually felt more rough. Like sandpaper.__

____

____

He cut the last part of the net and pulled it away from the sharkman. The creature surfaced again and moved his tail. He was now completely detached from the net.

"Thank you, Zoro!" Luffy exclaimed. He happily swam a circle around the man before giving him a hug. The other man froze at the contact, but the merman didn't notice. He was just glad to finally touch someone again.

Zoro didn't really know what to do in this situation, so he just let the other embrace him without saying anything.

After a short while Luffy let go of the other. Both just stared at each other for a few seconds before Zoro started his way back to the shore. The merman followed him as far as he could, careful not to get too close to the shallow end.

Zoro sat down on the shore and made an attempt to wring out his soaked pants. When that didn't really work he waited for the sun to dry it. The body of the deceased man still laid on the same place.

The man still had to do something about the corpse. The best thing to do was go to the nearest village and ask for help. Charlie wasn't the first one to die here, so at least _some _people should know what to do.__

____

____

"Luffy, I'm going to see if I can find someone who knows what to do with the body. You need to be out of here when I return, okay?" He told the creature. Luffy nodded as he looked at the dead man. Zoro then stood up and walked to his car. There was no need to hurry. Charlie was already dead so it wouldn't matter if he got help a minute sooner or later.

The man got in his car and started it. From the corner of his eye he could see Luffy disappear from sight as he drove away.

* * *

It hadn't been that difficult to find someone who knew what to do about the corpse. Police and ambulance were called. They arrived half an hour later because the lake was far away from the nearest big city.

Someone from the village near the lake had come with Zoro to see if Charlie's death was indeed the work of the East Blue Monster. When the man saw the injuries on the deceased man, he confirmed to everyone that the man had been killed by the monster.

The police asked some standard questions before they left. The ambulance took the body and left as well. The villager took Charlie's car, which was still down by the lake, and the dead man's belongings to the village for Charlie's relatives to come pick up.

Zoro was then left alone by the lake. He was glad the police didn't question him too much. The only thing that bothered him was that no one seemed to care that someone had just been killed here. Was this really a regular thing to happen? Just how many people had Luffy killed?

Hours had already passed since he arrived here in the morning and he had to go home soon. Deciding to let Luffy know that the dead body had been removed before he left, the man walked to their usual spot and, like always, called the merman by making waves in the water with his hand.

It took longer than usual for the merman to come to the rock and when he finally did, Zoro noticed that the creature looked tired. Remembering that Charlie had already been dead for several hours when he arrived, Zoro concluded that Luffy must have been awake for the most part of the night.

"The body has been taken away. We don't need to worry about that anymore." The man told the other. The creature nodded before yawning. Zoro chuckled. "You should get some sleep. I'm leaving anyway. We will see each other again tomorrow." He said. He would ask what exactly had happened that night the next day. He turned to leave when Luffy asked something.

"Why do humans want to capture me?"

The other man didn't reply for several seconds before speaking.

"I don't know."

The man then continued to walk to his car without another word. Luffy was left behind wondering why Zoro didn't tell him the truth.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Charlie is gone again. I didn't like that guy anyway..  
> Also, a (late) Merry Christmas to you all!  
> Thank you for reading!


	7. Chapter 7

Kuina closed her book and stood up. She looked on her watch. Zoro had left the house about ten minutes ago.

Her brother had left the house every day for the past two weeks or so. He always said he wanted to 'explore' their new environment, but did he really need almost two weeks to do that? Kuina didn't think so. She knew her brother and she knew he was hiding something from her.

She walked up the stairs to go to Zoro's bedroom. She was out of breath when she finally reached the room. Her physical condition had really worsened the last few months. She opened the door and entered her brother's bedroom. The young woman looked around in the room until she saw what she was looking for. Zoro's laptop. She had seen him typing a lot of stuff on this thing lately, something that he normally never did.

Kuina knew it was wrong to look through her brother's stuff on his laptop, but she was just too curious. She had to know what Zoro was doing outside the house and maybe his laptop would give any useful information. She wouldn't have to do this if Zoro had just told her what he was doing when she asked him a few days ago.

She sat down on her brother's bed and turned the laptop on. She wondered what she would find. She put in the password that she still remembered from the time she and her brother had to share this laptop after Zoro broke hers. He never bothered to change the password.

The background was a picture of her and her brother that was taken a few years ago. It was taken on a trip to the other side of the country. She was still healthy back then.

Kuina pushed away the memories of that trip and focused on the task at hand. She first went to the internet in the hope to find something interesting in his browser history. She clicked on a few sites in his history, but other than some weird meaningless sites and some.. _inappropriate _things, she didn't find anything interesting.__

____

She was slightly disappointed, but what exactly had she expected to find here? The address of a new girlfriend who lived nearby? No, she found nothing useful. Well, one thing that she thought was strange was that her brother seemed to have a weird obsession with mermen.

She closed the internet again and began to look through the files on Zoro's computer. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary. Kuina then began opening some random documents. Her brother had been typing things so maybe she could find an useful document.

After about five minutes of opening different documents she finally came upon something interesting. It was a document named 'Luffy'. That was a name she had never heard before. She opened the document and began reading its contents.

* * *

Zoro processed the information Luffy had given him. The merman had just told him what had happened the night of the attack. It wasn't exactly a long story, but it took an eternity for Luffy to tell him everything because the teen kept wandering off subject.

"Okay so, if I understand everything correctly, that man came here at night. He set a trap and you were stupid enough to go to it and get caught. Then you two fought and you accidentally killed him." Zoro said.

Luffy whined. "No, I wasn't stupid. The food he had thrown in the water just smelled really good and I was hungry!" The creature said.

"And then you set off the trap he had set out for you."

"No! It went off on its own. I didn't do anything!"

Zoro sighed. "I thought I had asked you to be careful.." He said with an annoyed look on his face. "Hey, I didn't die. Everything is fine. See? The cuts have already healed!" Luffy said as he showed the other his arms. The cuts and bruises on his arms and the rest of his body had indeed healed a lot in just one night.

"But still," The other man began. "This could have ended much worse. What if he _did _catch you? You could have been killed, Luffy." He said. "You can't be careless in these kinds of situations. That could cost you your life."__

____

__

Luffy looked down at the water. "I'm sorry.." He said. Zoro's gaze softened. "Hey, I'm not mad at you. I'm just saying you should be careful. I don't want you to get hurt." He told the other. The merman knew that.

He really didn't mean to get caught. It was just.. he couldn't think clearly when food was involved. As soon as the bait had hit the water he had gone to get it. When he finally had it that stupid trap went off and a net had fallen on him. He had tried to get it off, but then the human who set the trap came and began to pull the net towards the shore.

He didn't know what the man planned to do after he got him to shore, but he wasn't willing to find out. He had seen the man take several weird-looking things from the bags he had with him and those things didn't really look merman-friendly.

Luffy had immediately attacked the man to try to get him to let go of the net. The merman knew the shore was bad news for him so he needed to prevent the human from dragging him too close to the shallow end. The man had fought back with a knife and had managed to strike him several times, but nothing too critical. Luffy had bitten the man a few times and cut him with his sharp nails while trying to get lose from the net.

At some point, the creature had managed to get a hold of the man's right leg with his sharp teeth and started twisting and turning in the water. The man had tried to stop him by plunging the knife in his side, but that made the sharkman only bite down harder on the leg. The creature's sharp nails had cut the man's chest, creating long bleeding gashes.

The human's leg was broken by the force of Luffy's jaws. The man had screamed in pain and swung his knife at the monster to try to get him to let go of his leg. The merman eventually released the leg because he thought the human had enough and would go away. Apparently, a fractured leg wasn't enough to stop the guy.

The man had wasted no time jumping on the creature's back to try and stab him in the back. This was a big mistake. The merman twisted around which caused the man to go under in the water with the monster above him. He accidentally let go of the knife as he tried to get back to the surface.

Luffy had to land a few more hits on the man before the human decided to flee. The man swam back to the shore where he tried to drag himself out of the water. Unknown to both of them, Luffy had accidentally severed an artery in the man's leg when he had bitten him there. This caused the man to lose consciousness from too much blood loss and eventually bleed to death.

While Luffy had fought with the man, the net had slipped down his body to his tail and got stuck around it. It already had attached itself to a branch sticking out of the ground, so the merman had basically trapped himself in the net. He failed to detach himself from the net. He had spent the following hours staring at the dead man until Zoro came and freed him from the net.

"Hey Luffy?" The merman looked up at the other man. "How about we forget about all this. It happened but that doesn't mean we need to keep thinking about it. So let's forget forget it for now and think about something fun. Sounds like a good idea?" Zoro asked.

The merman stared at his friend before grinning. "Yeah! Let's do something fun now!"

* * *

She stared at the screen with confusion after she finished reading the document. What the hell was Zoro writing about? A merman who lived in a lake nearby? Did her brother use drugs or something?

A merman could not exist, right? Mermen are just characters from fairytales. There is no way.. But if she had to believe what her brother had written down, a lot of things made more sense. Like the meat Zoro had used for something she didn't know. She already knew the story about 'the stray dog who needed food' was fake, but reading that he had given the meat to a merman called Luffy was even weirder.

And this also explained why Zoro came home yesterday looking like he had a really bad day. According to this document, the merman had killed someone who wanted to catch him and her brother had to deal with the corpse.

Her eye fell on the picture of the wanted poster she read about at the bottom of the page. The creature that was drawn on the poster didn't really fit the description her brother gave of the merman. The bounty was $1.000.000. That was _a lot _of money. It was more than enough for the treatment for her disease.__

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____

Kuina was glad to know that her brother might have found a way to pay for her treatment, but something just didn't feel right. It was the way Zoro wrote about the merman. Some of the things he had written down were things that could be useful if he wanted to catch the merman, but most of the content consisted of short summaries of events that had happened while Zoro was at the lake. Her brother wrote that he only pretended to be the merman's friend, but the way he explained the things he experienced with Luffy told Kuina otherwise. She could see from the way he wrote about the merman that they were very good friends.

Even though Kuina really wanted and needed that expensive treatment, she knew Zoro would regret it if he went through with his plan. She had to convince her brother not to catch his friend and crush the friendship he had build with the merman. Zoro didn't have many friends, but the friends he did have were very precious to him. It would cause more harm than happiness if he went through with his plan. The treatment would make her chance of survival only twenty percent anyway.

With her mind made up the woman turned off her brother's laptop and put it back where it had been. She then exited the bedroom and walked to the stairs. She had to talk with Zoro when he returned home. She had to tell him he didn't need to ruin his friendship with Luffy for her sake.

She was so occupied with these thoughts that she didn't even see the sock lying on the stairs.

* * *

Zoro and Luffy were having a conversation when suddenly Zoro's phone rang. He frowned, not having expected any phone calls today, before grabbing the device from his pocket. Kuina's number was displayed on the screen. He answered the phone, wondering if something was wrong with his sister.

"Hello? Kuina?" He asked.

_"Z-Zoro, I need you to come h-home immediately.." _The voice at the other end of the phone said weakly.__

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____

The green-haired man quickly stood up. "Kuina?! What happened? Speak to me!" He yelled at his phone, worry clearly noticeable in his voice. Luffy watched him with concern. He knew Zoro had a sister. Did something happen to her?

_"I fell down the stairs. I-I think I hit my head on the way down. I feel sick.. My leg hurts so bad. I think i-it's broken." _Kuina's voice sounded pained.__

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____

"Stay were you are. I'll be there as quick as I can!" Zoro yelled. He stood up and grabbed his stuff before turning to Luffy. "I need to go. I'll see you later." He said before sprinting to his car.

Luffy watched as the car drove away. He was worried about Zoro's sister. He hoped everything would be alright.

* * *

Kuina's condition was bad. When Zoro had arrived home he found his sister lying at the bottom of the stairs. She was barely conscious. She was bleeding from her head and her leg looked broken.

He had immediately taken her to his car and drove to the nearest hospital. It was an almost half an hour ride, but he managed to get there in less than twenty minutes because he drove faster than the speed limit.

At the hospital it became clear that Kuina's leg was indeed broken. She also had a bad concussion and a fractured skull.

Zoro was very relieved when the doctors told him that she was going to be fine. He had been scared shitless when he found her. He thought he was going to lose her. He really thought he was going to lose her to an accident involving stairs.

She had to stay at the hospital for two days before she could go home. Zoro thought it was a little short, but the doctors insisted he'd take her home.

Now here he was, three days later, sitting at his sleeping sister's bedside. She had woken up a few times in the last three days, but she hadn't said much. The only thing she had told him was that she slipped on a sock when she walked down the stairs. The man immediately decided that he would never leave the house again without checking for anything his sister could slip on or any other dangers. Zoro hadn't visited Luffy yet. The merman must be worried.

Chopper and Usopp, who were still in the area, had visited when they returned home because Chopper wanted to see her condition himself. He, too, confirmed that the young woman would be alright.

The two told Zoro that they would be leaving soon. They were going to stay here for two or three more days before returning home. It would take a while before the young doctor could visit them again.

What had happened today had really scared Zoro. He never liked it when Kuina was in pain. Today, he felt like he had come so close to losing her. It was something he never wanted to feel again, but he knew he would experience it once more. His sister hadn't told him, but he had noticed that her condition had worsened these past few weeks. Her sickness was getting worse. He feared that she wouldn't live another year.

At that moment he made a decision. It pained him to have to do it, but he needed the money for his sister's treatment. He couldn't lose Kuina.

Tomorrow he'll do it. Tomorrow he will collect Luffy's bounty.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading. I hope you enjoyed!


	8. Chapter 8

Zoro sighed for what felt like the umpteenth time that morning. He had woken up early to think about his plan once more. Yesterday he had decided that today would be the day he captured Luffy to collect the bounty on his head. Right now, he was sitting at the dinner table wondering if, maybe, he should wait a little longer.

He didn't want do say goodbye to his friend yet. He had become attached to the teen, something that shouldn't have happened. That was never the plan. He really didn't want to end this friendship, but he knew it would only get harder to do this the longer he waited. If he waited any longer he would only get closer to the merman.

He sighed again and put his head in his hands. Why did this have to be so hard?

The thoughts continued to circulate in his mind for a while before he finally stood up. He _had _to do it. For his sister's sake. Kuina had to survive. He couldn't lose her! He looked at the clock. He should get going now.__

____

He grabbed the basket he had taken with him every time he went to Luffy. He filled it with meat for the merman and some other food for himself. He was going to act like it was any normal day. Luffy couldn't suspect anything or the plan would be ruined.

He walked to the bathroom. He still needed one last thing. Something he needed for his plan to succeed. He entered the bathroom and opened the cabinets to search for the item he needed. He shoved aside various bottles of pills and other medical things until he found what he was looking for.

It was a bottle of very strong sleeping aid. Kuina sometimes needed this. There were periods when his sister just couldn't fall asleep, most likely from pain, and failed to rest for days. That's why the doctor gave them this. The strong sleeping aid always succeeded to put Kuina to sleep no matter what her situation was at that moment. The only downside of the sleeping aid was that his sister stayed very drowsy for the next couple of hours after she woke up.

Because he didn't want to hurt his friend, Zoro had decided that the best option was to put the merman to sleep by using his sister's sleeping aid. Luffy won't suspect anything. He didn't know if it was going to work considering how energetic the merman was, but it wouldn't hurt to try.

Zoro slipped the bottle in his pocket and exited the bathroom. He grabbed the basket and left the house. He had left a note behind for his sister for if she woke up while he was still gone. The weather was good. It was very sunny for this early in the morning.

The weather totally didn't fit his mood today.

He got in his car and drove away. However, he didn't go to the lake. Instead, he went to a village. The village closest to the lake and the one where he had seen Luffy's wanted poster. He had to do something there before he could begin with his plan.

He parked his car and got out. Nobody was outside. He slowly made his way through the village in search for the bar where he had seen the wanted poster. When he finally found it he noticed that everything was dark inside. He wondered if the bar was open yet. He walked to the door and pushed against it. It opened.

He pushed the door open all the way and stepped inside. He looked around but saw nobody inside the building. Even the bartender was nowhere to be seen. He made his way over to the bar and the pinned papers on the wall behind it.

The wanted poster was still in the same place as it had been when he first came here. Zoro looked at drawing of 'the monster' with a frown on his face. The drawing made Luffy look so.. evil. So dangerous. It made him realize that he really was the only one who knew that the merman was actually a kind creature.

"What are you doing here so early in the morning? Looking for a wake-up drink?" A voice suddenly said, scaring the shit out of Zoro. The green-haired man looked at the bartender who was now standing behind the bar. When did he get here?

Zoro recovered from his shock and answered the man. "Not exactly. I just have a few questions regarding the East Blue Monster and I was wondering if someone here could answer them." He said.

The man frowned. "If you're asking for information about the monster, then I don't think anyone can help you. There is very little known about it." The bartender said.

"That's not what I meant." Zoro began. "I was wondering where I need to bring the monster if I catch him and what will happen to him afterwards." He said. The other man scratched his chin. "You know, that's a really good question.."

"So you don't know?" Zoro asked. The bartender shrugged. "I don't think anyone knows. We don't have a police here so there isn't really a place where you could drop off the monster. Why do you ask? Do you think you can catch it?"

"I do. I'll probably have him at the end of the day." Zoro replied. The bartender looked at him like he didn't believe him. Then again, why should he? So many have already died trying to get their hands on the creature, so why would Zoro be an exception?

Zoro sighed knowing very well that the man doubted that he would succeed. "Look, I'm going to do my best to bring him here. Just give me a place where I can deliver him and collect the bounty." He said. The other man thought for a little while before answering.

"There lives an old hunter in this village. I think he might have a cage where the monster can be put in. He lives in the house next door. You should talk to him about it. As for the money, it can take a while for you to receive it. The families who have gathered the money have to be notified first. I think one of them will give it to you once they arrive here."

Zoro nodded in understanding. Of course, he thought it would be better if he received the money right away, but he could understand that they needed some time to get it ready for him. He just hoped it wouldn't take too long.

"Thank you, I know enough." Zoro said and walked to the door. The bartender's eyes followed him as he exited the door. The old man then sighed and shook his head. 'Just another idiot who thinks he can get easy money..' He thought before continuing to do what he had been doing before Zoro entered the building.

* * *

Zoro knocked on the door of the small house. He was now at the builing the bartender told him to go to. Seconds passed without any response from inside. He was about to knock again when he heard a noise from behind the door. A few more seconds passed before the door opened and Zoro was met with the sight of a man.

The man, who was probably around sixty years old, looked at him with an annoyed look on his face. It was clear he wasn't very found of strangers.

"Who are you and what the hell do you want from me?" The man asked rudely. Zoro continued to stare at the man for a short while before answering. "Good morning sir. Are you the hunter the bartender was talking about?" He asked uncertainly. He didn't like this man already.

"How should I know if I'm the hunter the bartender was talking about?! But I am the only hunter in this village, I guess I am. Why did he send you here? I'm sure I didn't forget to pay for my last drink." The man said annoyed.

"No, that's not why I'm here. I need some information and the bartender said you could help me." The green-haired man said. "It's about the East Blue Monster. I'm going to capture him today, but I need a place to bring him to. The bartender said you might have a cage to put him in."

The man frowned at the mention of the monster. "I do have a cage, yeah. What makes you think you can capture it? You don't seem like a hunter to me." He said, doubt clear in his voice. "I just know I can." Zoro replied. "But back to my question, can I bring the monster here when I capture him?"

The man stared at him intensely for ten seconds, making Zoro very uncomfortable, before sighing. "Sure, whatever. Follow me to my backyard. I'll show you the cage." The man said as he stepped outside, closed the door of his house, and started walking to the back of his house. Zoro then noticed something about the man. He had a prosthetic leg. He decided not to comment on it as he followed the man around to the backyard.

The man entered his backyard through a rusty iron gate and walked to a shed that stood in the middle of it. He opened the door and flicked on the light.

In the shed were a lot of objects. Everything was covered in white sheets so Zoro couldn't see what they were. Perhaps the man had done that to protect the objects from dust. The hunter walked to one of the larger objects standing in the shed and pulled the sheet off. There stood indeed a cage. The cage was big, about two by two meters wide and another two meters high.

"If you indeed catch that monster and bring it here, you need to ride around the back to this shed. I'll leave the gate open. If you get me then I can open the shed for you. Okay?" The man asked. Zoro nodded. The man was about to leave but Zoro stopped him.

"Before I bring him here, I need you to promise me something." He said. The man looked at Zoro with an irritated look on his face. "That depends on what you want me to promise." The man replied.

"When I bring him here I don't want you, or anyone else, to harm him. If you do, I will take him back to the lake and someone else can try to capture him." Zoro said. The other man stared at him with an unreadable look on his face. "It would be awful if that monster stayed in the lake any longer, so I guess I'll promise I won't hurt it." The man replied.

Something about the hunter's features screamed 'liar' but Zoro pushed the negative feeling away.

"Thank you. I have to leave now. I'll see you later." Zoro said before leaving the backyard. He wasn't sure what to think of this old man. Something about him gave him the creeps. Was he really going to leave Luffy behind with this man?

Once Zoro was gone, the man's mouth twisted into a creepy smile. He patted his prosthetic leg. "It seems like I get my revenge after all.."

* * *

"Zoro, are you sure you're alright?" Luffy asked for the eleventh time that day. "I'm fine! Stop asking that every time I don't reply to something you said!" Zoro responded annoyed. He had arrived at the lake a while ago, ready to spend one last day with his best friend, but he kept spacing out much to the merman's concern.

"But you're acting differently today! There is something on your mind, I know it. Just tell me. I'm your friend! Friends are supposed to tell each other if something's wrong!" Luffy exclaimed.

Zoro swallowed his frustration and gave a small smile. "You really don't need to worry. It's nothing of your concern." He said. He reached his hand into the basket and grabbed another piece of meat. He gave it to the merman in the hope the teen would drop the subject. Luffy accepted the food and ate it in the blink of an eye.

"You know, maybe I should go swimming for a little while. It's really hot in the sun." The green-haired man said. Luffy looked up at him, excitement clear in his eyes. "Really? That would be amazing! You have never gone swimming with me before!" The merman exclaimed happily.

Zoro took his shirt off and placed it next to the basket. His pants ended up in the same place. Underneath his pants he wore black swimming trunks. He had put them on that morning because he already knew that he was going to enter the water.

Without Luffy seeing anything, Zoro grabbed the bottle of sleeping aid from his pants' pocket and took the last remaining piece of meat in his hand. He knew how much of the sleeping aid his sister needed to fall asleep, so he used the same amount, if not a little more, to put Luffy to sleep. He added the sleeping aid to the meat and quickly hid the bottle again. He then turned to face the curious merman.

"Hey, I found one last piece of meat. Here." Zoro said and handed Luffy the meat. The creature accepted the meat and ate it without thinking twice. He made a weird face after swallowing it. "Eww, what was that? It was so nasty!" The merman said. "Maybe it was an old piece that was left from the last time I visited?" Zoro said, though it sounded more like a question.

"Man, now I only have this nasty taste in my mouth." Luffy murmured as he tried to rub the awful taste from his tongue. Zoro apologized with a small smile. The man then stood up and walked to the shallower part of the lake.

He entered the water and made his way to the deeper part of the lake, slowly getting used to the temperature of the water. Luffy swam over to him while smiling brightly.

Finally Zoro was completely in the water, only his head stayed above the surface. The merman kept swimming around him while talking about how awesome swimming was.

The two swam together in the lake for a while. Luffy had suggested playing a game of tag, so that's what they did. Of course, Luffy was way faster in the water than Zoro because he was a sharkman. Zoro didn't mind though. He never really liked playing tag, so he didn't mind losing.

After they played for a while Zoro noticed that Luffy was slowing down. The sleeping aid must have taken effect. It probably won't be long before Luffy falls asleep.

They continued to swim and talk together for a little while longer until Luffy started complaining about being tired. The merman didn't really understand why he was feeling so tired all of the sudden. He tried to leave to take a nap, but Zoro managed to convince him to stay by saying he wanted to play one last game before he left, which the merman thought was strange considering Zoro didn't really like games that much. But of course, Luffy couldn't swim away from a game.

So the two of them played another game. One for which they didn't have to move around a lot since Luffy was very tired. The merman became more sleepy as minutes passed by. At some point Zoro had to hold Luffy up by the teen's waist to keep him above the surface.

"Zoro, I really want to go to sleep now. Please let me go.." The merman murmured tiredly as he weakly pushed against the other's chest to try to loosen the other man's grip on his waist. Zoro's grip didn't falter though. "You're in no condition to swim away, Luffy. Go to sleep if you're tired. I got you." He said.

Luffy didn't reply, but decided to do what Zoro had told him and give in to the sleep. He trusted his friend. Slowly, the last of his strength faded away and his eyes closed. Zoro stayed quiet. The only sound being the steady breathing of the merman in his arms.

The man released a breath he didn't know he had been holding in. He stared down at the sleeping teen in his arms. Doing this to his friend, it felt so _terribly wrong _. Every little piece of him protested against doing this. He couldn't help but regret doing this even though he knew that this could possibly save his sister's life.__

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He slowly started to make his way to the shore, taking Luffy with him. Halfway to the shore he had to pick the merman up because the water was getting too shallow to drag him. He carried his friend the last few feet out of the water and the short distance to his car. The sandpaper-like tail scraped the skin of his arm open, making him bleed a little. Zoro didn't care. He felt like he deserved it anyway. How he managed to open the trunk of his car without using his hands he didn't know, but it didn't matter anyway. He gently put his friend down in the car. When he was sure Luffy was comfortable, he slowly closed the trunk.

Zoro returned to the rock and dried himself with a towel he had brought with him. He dressed himself once he was dry enough and gathered his stuff before going to his car. He entered the car with his stuff and started the vehicle, but didn't drive away immediately.

This was his last chance to go back. This was the last chance to stop this plan of his. He could still bring Luffy back to the water. He could even drive Luffy to the sea, to the teen's home, if he wanted to. But if he did that he wouldn't get the money his sister needed so badly. If he didn't do this, it would certainly be game over for Kuina. He couldn't let that happen. Not when the money was within reach.

He sighed and started the car. His mind was made up. He didn't want to, but he _had _to do this. He didn't have an other choice.__

* * *

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Luffy's consciousness was slowly returning. He felt himself being moved by something, which turned into _someone _when he felt hands lift him up. He could vaguely hear voices. Not one, but three. They sounded distant yet nearby at the same time.__

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His back was met with something cold as he was laid down. He realized that he himself felt cold as well. He never really noticed the cold in the water. Wait, he didn't feel any water around him. Was he out of the water? But how?

He tried opening his eyes, but that proved to be quite a task. Why did he feel so weak? So _tired? _He was confused. What was happening? He tried once again to open his eyes and, after a short while, he finally succeeded.__

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His sight was blurry, but he still managed to make out three figures standing in front of him. He had to look up to fully see them, so he had to be lying on the ground. He somehow managed to recognize one of the blurry figures as Zoro. Who were the other two? Where was he? Why wasn't he in the water?

The three figures seemed to be talking to each other. Luffy couldn't understand what they were saying though. His mind was too hazy. The two unknown figures were speaking loudly and patting Zoro's shoulders. Were they.. praising him?

He moved his hand over the ground. The material underneath him was as cold as steel. Maybe it was steel. He didn't know. He just couldn't think clearly right now. What was happening? He didn't understand!

From the corner of his eye he could see the bars of the cage he was in. Wait, he was in a cage? But why? He hadn't been attacked, had he? He didn't feel any pain, so he probably didn't fight. Then how did he get caught? And why was Zoro with them? Was Zoro trying to get him out of here? Zoro was helping him, he had to be. He was his friend!

He wouldn't betray him, would he?

His head became more clear as minutes passed. His sight became less blurry and the figures got more shape. Their voices sounded excited. They all seemed happy about something, but about what?

Zoro moved away from the other two and entered the cage through the still open gate. He knelt down next to him and whispered something to him. He was saying that he was sorry. Sorry for what? Please Zoro, what is going on?

Luffy tried to speak, but only a small whimper came out. Zoro's hand moved to his head and ruffled his hair. The man apologized again. Why was he doing this? What were they doing here? Who were those other guys?

Zoro stood up again and left the cage. The merman stretched a shaky hand out to try to grab the man's pant leg, but his fingers only grazed the material. Luffy's eyes became watery. Was Zoro betraying him? But why? They were friends! Friends don't do this to each other! He felt his heart break as Zoro closed the gate of the cage.

One of the other men knelt down next to the cage. He vaguely recognized the man from an old memory. It wasn't a positive memory. The man's smiled gave him chills.

The man stood up again and joined the others. The three men then started to say goodbye to each other. Wait, was Zoro leaving him here? No, no, no, no, _no _! He couldn't do this! Why?! What did he ever do to Zoro to deserve this?! They were friends!__

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Or.. was their friendship a big lie?

Zoro looked at the merman one last time before turned around, not wanting to look as a tear slid down his friend's face.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoyed. Thank you for reading!


	9. Chapter 9

Zoro entered his temporarily house with mixed feelings. The sun was slowly vanishing as the night approached. He had just returned from the village. Luffy was in the hunter's cage now.

When he had arrived in the hunter's backyard a little while ago, the bartender he had spoken with earlier that day had come to take a look as well. Apparently, he had seen Zoro's car drive to the hunter's shed and was curious if the man had actually succeeded in capturing the monster.

While the two men had been praising Zoro for his 'bravery', he continued to stare at the slowly waking form of the merman in the cage. The confusion he saw in the teen's drowsy eyes had filled him with guilt.

He had stepped away from the other men and knelt down next to his friend. He had quietly apologized so only Luffy could hear him. As he stood up again, the merman had reached towards him in an attempt to take a hold of him. Seeing the hope fading from his friend's eyes as he closed the cage had almost caused him to blow off his plan and take the teen back to the lake.

Zoro shook his head as he tried to clear these thoughts from his head. He needed to forget about this. He had to focus on other things. He had to stop thinking about Luffy for a little while.

He locked the front door behind him and made his way to the kitchen. He set his basket and the other things he had taken with him down on the table and opened the refrigerator. He took out a bottle of soda. He would have prefered a cold beer, but there wasn't any here right now.

He took a swig of the soda before deciding to go upstairs to check on his sister. He made his way up the stairs and opened the door. Kuina was awake and reading one of her books. It was good to see that she was feeling slightly better. Kuina had been barely awake the past few days.

"How are you feeling?" Zoro asked as he settled in the chair next to his sister's bed. The small trash can beside the bed was halfway filled with crumpled tissue papers despite being emptied the previous day. Kuina jumped slightly when he spoke. She hadn't noticed him entering her room.

"Oh hey. I feel fine. I only have a slight headache, that's all." Kuina answered. "Do you want a painkiller?" The man asked, concern clear in his voice. His sister rolled her eyes. "It's not that bad. Stop worrying so much." She told him before putting a bookmark in her book and closing it.

"So, what have you been up to?" She asked as she laid her book down on the nightstand next to the bed. Zoro took another swig of his soda. Now was the best time to surprise his sister.

"Well, you might not believe me, but I found a way to pay for the treatment you need. I don't have the money in my possession yet, but that won't take long. I will receive the money in a few days. Isn't that great?"

Kuina's eyes widen. Not because of shock that her brother had actually found enough money to pay for that expensive treatment, but because she suddenly remembered what she had discovered just before she fell down the stairs a few days ago.

Had Zoro really..?

She took a deep breath. 'Don't jump to conclusions yet, Kuina.' She told herself. She turned to face her brother. "May I ask how you got that money?" She asked.

The man froze. He had expected his sister to be happy, to be thankful. Instead, his sister's voice sounded sad, unsure. But why? Wasn't she glad she might survive?

"I uh.. Maybe it's better if you don't know. It's not important anyway. What is important is that you still have a chance of survival." Zoro answered. He then realized that he himself sounded unhappy as well.

No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't seem to smile. He didn't understand, he _should _smile. He should be happy! There was a chance Kuina was going to survive! Sure, he had to end his friendship with Luffy, but he only knew the merman for about a month. Why would he care what happened to the creature. His sister was way more important!__

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Still, he couldn't stop regretting what he had done. The look on Luffy's face when he last saw him had been devastating. It made him hate himself for doing this to the teen.

"You regret doing this to your friend, don't you." His sister said. It wasn't a question.

Zoro looked at Kuina with wide eyes as he realized that he had never said anything about Luffy to her. How did she know he had done something to a friend?

The man voiced his thoughts. His sister sighed before answering. "I went through the stuff on your laptop. I read about Luffy." She answered. Zoro was about to ask why she would do that, but Kuina cut him off.

"You shouldn't have done this, Zoro. Not only did you hurt _him _when you did that, you also hurt _yourself _. I can see it in your eyes. You value friends as much as you value family. Not only that, but I don't like what you have done either."____

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Zoro sighed, his eyes evading his sister's. "What's done is done. We will receive the money probably within a week. Tomorrow I'll contact the people responsible for the treatment. I'll try to arrange a meeting with them as soon as possible." He said. The woman seemed to think of what to do before speaking again.

"You know what? I won't accept the money." Kuina stated as she crossed her arms. Zoro's mouth fell open in shock. "What?! Kuina, this might be the only chance we have at paying for the treatment! You will die without it! Why wouldn't you want to use this money? It can safe your life!" The man shouted at his sister.

"Because I don't accept it that you ruined your friend's life for my sake!" Kuina yelled back.

The woman began coughing immediately after she yelled those words. Kuina had experienced a lot of coughing fits lately. She slapped Zoro's hand away as he tried to help her. The young woman grabbed a tissue paper and wiped her mouth and hand before tossing it in the garbage bin.

The siblings stared at each other for a long while without saying anything. Then, after what felt like hours, Kuina spoke.

"You can do with the money whatever you want, but I refuse to use any of it. And I won't accept treatment either if it's paid with this money. Now get out of my room." She said. Zoro sighed. He stood up and left the room.

He considered going downstairs to put away the things he had set on the dinner table, but decided against it. Instead, he went to his own bedroom. He entered the room and sat down on the edge of his bed. He set the now empty bottle of soda on his nightstand. He put his head in his hands and groaned.

What was he going to do now?

* * *

Kuina sighed as the door of her bedroom closed. She could hear her brother walking to his room. She glanced at the book on her nightstand and stretched her hand out to grab it, but pulled her arm back before she could touch the object. She really didn't feel like reading right now.

The woman somehow felt partly responsible for whatever Zoro had done to his friend. If she hadn't fallen down the stairs and forgotten to tell him not to do it, maybe she could have prevented this from happening.

She didn't really understand why she refused the money. With the treatment she could get with the money she had a slightly higher chance of survival. But accepting the money her brother received by betraying his friend.. it just felt wrong.

Not only that, but the look on Zoro's face told her that he deeply regretted doing this.

She sighed again. They were going to have dinner in an hour or something. Then she would talk to Zoro. She didn't really know what he had done to his friend, but she knew Luffy was still alive. Her brother would never kill a friend.

Zoro had to go back to him. Who knows what has happened to the merman while Zoro was gone?

* * *

They ate dinner in silence. Zoro hadn't looked his sister in the eyes the entire time. Kuina didn't look at him either. The tense atmosphere was clearly noticeable in the kitchen.

The two of them stayed seated at the table after they finished eating. They knew they had to talk with each other about what had happened. The silence was broken when they _both _started talking.__

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"I've decided-"

"You should-"

Zoro and Kuina shut their mouths and looked at each other, not having expected the other to talk as well. "You go first." The young woman said after a few seconds. Her brother nodded and started talking.

"I've decided to get him back. If we're not going to use the money, then what's the point of having it?" The man said while avoiding eye contact. Even though he didn't say it, Kuina knew that the feeling of guilt played a big part in Zoro's decision as well.

The young man looked at his sister in confusion as she smiled. This wasn't exactly a happy subject, so why was she smiling? Kuina noticed his stare.

"I was about to tell you to get him back as well. I'm glad you realized that this wasn't the right thing to do." She said. "When are you going?"

Her brother thought for a short while. "Tomorrow morning. I want to go now, I don't think that's a good idea. I'm tired because I've been up all day. I'm afraid I'll fall asleep while driving if I go now." He replied. Kuina had indeed noticed the man's tired eyes. He probably hadn't slept much last night. Zoro normally slept longer than an average person, so it wasn't surprising he was so tired now.

"You should go to bed early then. I'll do the dishes." The woman said. Zoro looked at all the dirty plates on the dinner table. "You sure you don't need any help? It'll be a lot faster if we do it together." He said. Kuina shook her head. "I'll be fine. It isn't that much. Go to bed, Zoro. You need to rest."

Finally, Zoro gave in with a sigh. "Fine, I'll go. Just call me if you need help with anything. Goodnight." The man said before standing up from his chair and leaving the kitchen. Kuina heard the stairs creak as he made his way to his bedroom.

The woman stood up and began clearing the table. It was then that she suddenly had another coughing fit. The coughing lasted for about a minute before finally stopping. Kuina moved her hand away from her mouth and stared at the red substance in the palm of her hand.

She washed the blood off her hand and mouth. This had happened a lot lately. She had hidden the fact that she was coughing up blood from her brother so he wouldn't worry more than he already did.

She knew her condition was getting worse. She would probably only live for a few more months at most.

A tear slid down Kuina's face. The hard reality had struck her a long time ago, but she couldn't help but get sad every time she thought of the fact she wouldn't live much longer. She didn't want to die yet!

But although she would surely die without treatment, she would never be able to accept the money her brother would receive for capturing his friend. That just wasn't right. Her chance of survival with treatment was only slightly higher anyway, so there was no need to ruin someone else's life for something that could be completely useless for her.

She sighed. Why was she so unfortunate to get this disease?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoyed and thank you for reading!


	10. Chapter 10

It was early in the morning when Zoro stepped in his car and drove to the village where he had left Luffy behind.

He didn't know what he was going to tell the hunter once he arrived there nor did he know what he was going to do with Luffy after he got him back. The merman was probably really angry with him and maybe didn't even consider him a friend anymore, but he still wanted to do something good for the creature as compensation for what he had done to him.

One of the things he had in mind was to bring the merman to the ocean. Luffy had said he used to live there, so Zoro wanted to bring him back there. Maybe his friend would forgive him if he did that.

He entered the village with his car and drove towards the hunter's house. He decided that it would be best if he immediately drove to the man's backyard instead of parking somewhere else first. He really didn't want to waste more time than needed here.

He frowned when he got closer to the hunter's backyard. He could hear a lot of noise coming from the place he was driving to. He wondered what or who could possibly make so much noise. He drove the last couple of meters and turned the last corner. He stared in disbelief at the sight before him.

He really hadn't expected to find a crowd of people in front of the shed.

It wasn't a big crowd, only about twenty people. They were most likely all villagers. There were men, women, and even some children. Some looked his way as he approached with his car, others continued to stare at whatever was in front of them.

The green-haired man stopped his car behind the group of people, unable to get any closer to the shed, and exited his vehicle. Everyone was talking, which was the cause of all the noise. What were all these people doing here? Had the hunter told them about Luffy? Were they here to watch him like some kind of zoo animal?

Zoro began to make his way through the crowd, pushing men and women aside to get through. Some people complained about his behaviour, but he paid no attention to that.

He pushed aside one last man before finally arriving at the front of the crowd. He stared at the sight before him with wide eyes. Anger flared up inside him. What the hell was this?!

The hunter he had trusted with his friend's life was smiling as he talked with another, unfamilier man. The hunter looked tired, as if he had been up all night. The cage was open and empty, blood staining the steel floor. Most of that went unnoticed by the green-haired man. The only thing he could look at was his friend laying on the floor in front of him.

If it wasn't for the shaky raise and falling of the merman's chest, Zoro would have thought he was dead. Luffy was badly injured. Cuts and bruises covered all visible parts of his body. His eyes were slightly opened, but they didn't seem to see anything.

The sharkman's body was covered in blood, old and fresh. His hands were bound behind his back with a rope that was too tight judging from the merman's bloodied and bruised wrists. A dirty cloth had been placed on the creature's back.

But the thing that disgusted Zoro most was the fact that there was a _child _sitting on Luffy's back, the cloth preventing blood from coming on the kid's clothes. The child was smiling at his mother as the woman took a photo of the kid.__

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What were these people thinking? That Luffy was some kind of attraction?!

Snapping out of his shock, Zoro ran to the hunter and angrily grabbed the man by his collar. The hunter hadn't noticed his presence before and was quite shocked that the green-haired man was now in front of him.

"What the hell did you do to him? I thought we had a deal!" Zoro yelled at the other man. The hunter grabbed the hand that was holding him and tried to loosen the grip on his collar. "This monster has killed many people, so a small punishment should do him good." The man answered.

"A _small _punishment?! He looks more dead than alive! Who gave you the authority to decide what happens to him?!" Zoro yelled. "It killed a friend of mine and tore off my leg. I think that gives me the right to let that monster experience the pain I felt." The man answered calmly, like he didn't mind that everyone was staring at them at all.__

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Zoro glared at the man before letting him go. He didn't have time for this. The sudden movement made the hunter fall to the floor. Zoro then turned around and ran to the badly beaten creature on the ground. The child that had been seated on the merman's back had been taken away by his mother when Zoro started yelling at the hunter.

Zoro knelt down next to his friend. He felt responsible for what had happened to the merman. This would never have happened if he hadn't brought Luffy here. He already felt guilty before he arrived here, but now he felt absolutely awful. He must be the worst friend someone could ever have.

The green-haired man started to undo the knot in the ropes around Luffy's wrists when he was interrupted by the hunter.

"What do you think you're doing?!" The man yelled at him, walking over to them as fast as his prosthetic leg could carry him. The hunter was about to yell again, but shut his mouth when Zoro raised a sword to his throat.

"Stay away from him." The green-haired swordsman said, a dangerous glint in his eyes. He was glad he had taken his swords with him. The hunter slowly backed away.

When the other man was far enough, Zoro used his sword to cut the ropes around Luffy's wrists. The teen's arms fell limply to the ground.

Zoro wasn't sure if the merman was conscious or not. Luffy's eyes were still slighly opened, but he didn't react to anything at all. What the hell had that man done to his friend? How had he managed to inflict so much damage on Luffy in less than a day?!

The man carefully brought the creature's body closer to him so he could pick him up. The tail felt dehydrated, which probably wasn't a good thing. The cloth fell down from the teen's back and revealed even more cuts and bruises. Zoro tried to find a way to hold his friend without touching any of the wounds, but that proved an impossible task as the teen's whole body was covered in them.

Zoro stood up with the merman in his arms. He walked to his car, ignoring the stares and whispers of people as he made his way through the crowd.

Zoro opened the trunk of his car and gently laid Luffy down. Blood started to soak the carpeting beneath the heavily wounded creature. He closed the trunk and locked it so no one could come close to his friend. He then turned to face the hunter who had followed him to his car.

"I'm taking him with me. I don't need the money anymore." Zoro said before sitting down in the driver's seat of his car.

"What? You can't do that! This monster has killed many brave people in the past years! It deserves to die!" The hunter yelled. Many villagers behind the man nodded in agreement.

Zoro turned his head to face the hunter and the group of people behind him. "This 'monster' is hell of a lot better than any of you could ever be. Those people wouldn't have been killed if they hadn't tried to kill this creature first. In my opinion, you and all the people who have ever hurt him are the real monsters." He said. 

The man then started his car and made his way out of the hunter's backyard.

The hunter and other villagers watched as he drove away. Zoro could only sigh in relief when he had finally left the village completely.

He didn't know what to do now. He couldn't bring Luffy to the sea, like his original plan had been. No, the merman needed medical attention first. But where was going to bring him? He didn't trust strangers with Luffy's life right now.

He sighed. The only safe place he could think of was his and Kuina's temporally house. He really didn't want to leave Luffy alone somewhere else after what just had happened.

Zoro drove to the house where he and Kuina were staying. He parked his car, got out of the vehicle and went to the trunk of his car. Luffy was now certainly unconscious judging from the somewhat steady breathing and closed eyes. There was blood on the carpeting and walls of his car, but Zoro couldn't care less.

The man picked the creature up in his arms and walked to the house, not bothering to lock his car behind him. He entered the house and went straight to the bathroom. He flicked the light on with his elbow. He stared at the room, not sure if his next actions were the right thing to do.

Finally, he switched into action and walked over to the bathtub. The bathtub was large, but not large enough. The end of the merman's tail hung over the edge of the bathtub as it was too long to completely fit inside the tub.

Zoro grabbed the shower head that hung above the tub and turned the water on. He didn't bother to make the water warm. The water in the lake where Luffy used to swim was always cold, so cold water shouldn't bother the sharkman.

The man began to carefully remove all the blood from the limp figure in the bathtub. The water that slid down the merman's body became a reddish-brown colour before disappearing in the drain.

After a short while the water coming from the sharkman stayed mostly clear of blood, so Zoro shut off the water. The man struggled with what to do next. He could see that some of the smaller wounds had already started to heal, but he was sure some of the big ones needed stitches. But he didn't know how to do that. He wasn't a doctor (or a vet). Even though he had been around doctors and hospitals a lot in the past few months, he still didn't know anything about giving medical attention to someone.

He couldn't call for a doctor. He really didn't trust anyone he didn't know. Who knows what a (unfamiliar) doctor would do to his friend?

Suddenly, he got an idea. He took out his cellphone and dialed a number. The phone ran a few times and Zoro crossed his fingers. 'Please pick up, please pick up, please pick up-'

_"Hello, Chopper here. Who's this?" _A voice said at the other end of the line.__

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"Chopper, this is Zoro. Where are you right now?" Zoro asked. He was sure Chopper noticed the slight shaking of his voice.

_"We're in the car. Why, is something wrong with Kuina? Do you need me to come to you?" _The other man asked. He could hear Chopper telling someone else, probably Usopp, to turn their car around and to drive to his and Kuina's house.__

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"No, nothing is wrong with Kuina. But you do need to come here. It's an emergency. How fast can you be here?" The green-haired man asked.

_"We passed your house not long ago, so probably within ten minutes if we drive fast. What's wrong? Did something happen to you? Is it bad?" _Chopper's voice sounded worried.__

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"It's.. difficult to explain. You'll see once you get here. See you soon." Zoro told the other. They both hang up and Zoro put his phone back in his pocket. He looked at Luffy. Fresh blood had already started to flow from the wounds at a slow pace. He knew that trying to stop the bleeding wasn't going to work. There were just too many wounds.

The man sat down on the floor next to the bathtub. Why had he been so stupid? How could he have thought the merman wouldn't be harmed by the hunter? What if Luffy had died there?

He traded his best friend for money to save his sister, but Kuina didn't want to use it even though she knew she would die without it. Because of his own stupidity, he could have lost both of them.

* * *

The doorbell rang. Zoro got up from his place on the floor next to the bathtub and went to answer the door. Chopper and Usopp were let in immediately. They both took of their coats before looking at Zoro with questioning eyes.

"So, what's going on? What did you need me for?" The young doctor asked. The green-haired man struggled with his words. "It's uh.. It's kinda complicated to explain. It would be better if I'd just show you." Zoro answered. "Follow me." He added and walked towards the bathroom. The other two men looked at each other in confusion before following their friend.

Zoro entered the bathroom, followed by the other men. Chopper and Usopp stopped dead in their tracks once their eyes fell upon the merman in the bathtub. Their eyes widen and their jaws dropped.

"W-what the hell is that?" Usopp stuttered. Chopper set a few steps closer to the bathtub. The doctor took in the large amount of injuries on the limp body in the tub. Even though Zoro had cleaned the blood off Luffy's body two times now, fresh red liquid was already oozing from the wounds.

"You can help him, right?" Zoro asked, totally ignoring Usopp's question. Chopper only nodded. The young doctor stretched his hand out and touched the sharkman's tail. The body in the bathtub didn't react to the contact.

"What happened?" Chopper asked while he grabbed his bag and began rummaged through it. There was a cabinet with medical supplies right next to him, but the doctor preferred his own equipment.

"It's a long story. I'll tell you later." Zoro said. His eyes followed every movement Chopper made as the doctor examined the merman's wounds. Chopper moved away from the bathtub and looked at Zoro. "Can you lift him out of the tub? I need better access to the wounds." The doctor asked. The older man nodded and moved the merman to the floor.

Chopper then started to treat the creature's injuries. The young man cleaned the wounds before stitching up the worst cuts. He was surprised to see that the wounds had already started to heal.

The young doctor paused once all wounds were cleaned and stitched up. He stared at the unconscious body of the merman in front of him. "He should be fine now, but I don't know if I should apply bandages or not. He will most likely have to be in the water to prevent the tail from drying out, but then the bandages will soak." He said.

Zoro thought for a short while before speaking. "I don't think he will need bandages. He healed really quick last time he got injured, so I wouldn't be surprised if that happened again." He told the doctor. Chopper decided to believe Zoro's words and began to put away his medical equipment.

"Do you know this creature?" Usopp asked. Zoro nodded. "Yeah, I met him just after me and Kuina arrived here. His name is Luffy." The man said. The three of them looked down at the unconscious form of the merman on the bathroom floor.

"What kind of creature is he?" Usopp asked curiously. He had never seen a creature like this, neither had Chopper.

"He told me he's a merman, or a sharkman. He came from the ocean, but lived in a lake nearby for the past eleven years." Zoro told the other two men. The young doctor stared in fascination at the merman, an unknown creature of the deep ocean, while Usopp's mind was flooded with thoughts about creepy sea monsters.

"I think I should put him back in the water. I don't want him to dry out." The green haired man said after a short silence. He picked Luffy up from the ground and moved him the small distance to the bathtub. He laid the merman down in the tub before grabbing a folded towel to support the creature's head.

"Chopper, does it matter if the stitches get wet?" Zoro asked. The doctor shook his head. "No, it doesn't. But I would check on them once in a while though. I can't say for sure that they'll stay in place. One might get lose." Chopper told him.

Zoro nodded in understanding before turning on the water in the bathtub. While water began to fill the tub, the green-haired man took out some more towels. He walked back to the bathtub and soaked one of them in water before laying it on the sharkman's tail, the part that hung over the edge of the tub and wasn't submerged in water. He wanted to be sure all of Luffy's body stayed hydrated.

Zoro shut off the water tap once the water level was just above the merman's tail. He stared at the teen for a few more seconds before turning around to face the two other men in the bathroom. "Do you two want a drink? I totally forgot to ask before." Zoro asked. The others accepted his offer and followed the man to the kitchen.

"I'm sorry for calling you here so suddenly. I couldn't think of anyone else." The green-haired man said as he prepared the others a drink. Chopper waved his apology off. "Don't worry about it. We weren't that far away from your house anyway." The younger man said.

"So anyway, how did you find Luffy? I've never heard about him before, so he must have been hidden very well." Usopp said. The other man finished the drinks and gave his friends both a glass. He sat down with them at the kitchen table and took a sip of his own drink before speaking, telling them the most important things that had happened with him and Luffy.

Chopper and Usopp both found the story quite interesting. They did get a bit upset with Zoro when they learned that he had betrayed the merman, but they could understand why he had done it.

"Well, at least you got him out of there on time. Those injuries could have been much worse." Chopper commented after Zoro finished talking. The green-haired man sighed. "Yeah, but that doesn't change the fact that I did this to him." He said.

The three talked some more before the two guests decided to leave. Their vacation in the mountains had come to an end and they were on their way home when Zoro had called them.

"We have a long way to go and I don't like driving in the dark." Usopp explained. Chopper agreed with his friend. They planned to go upstairs to say goodbye to Kuina, but that wasn't needed. The woman in question was already making her way down. How she managed to go up and down the stairs with a broken leg, nobody knew. Zoro had offered to help her with the stairs a few times already, but she kept telling him she didn't need any help.

"Kuina! You shouldn't put too much weight on that leg!" Chopper exclaimed. The woman ignored what he had said. "I heard you're going home. I guess it's goodbye for now, then." She said. The youngest two nodded. "We'll come to see you again sometime." Chopper said. Kuina smiled. "Hopefully we'll see each other soon." She agreed.

* * *

Zoro and his sister waved goodbye as the car faded from sight. They then went back inside. Kuina locked the door (they're not going outside again today anyway). She turned to face her brother once the door was closed.

"So, how is he?" She asked. Zoro scratched the back of his head. "Chopper patched him up. He said he should be fine." He replied. Kuina nodded in understanding. "He's in the bathroom, right?" She questioned. Her brother looked at her, wondering how she knew that. "Yeah, he is. Are you going to see him?"

"I have never seen him before, so yeah. I'm curious what your friend looks like." The woman replied. She then walked towards the bathroom, Zoro right behind her.

They entered the bathroom. Luffy was still out cold. Kuina looked at the creature with sympathy. The merman didn't have to go through all this. If only she had told Zoro not to do this..

"He looks pretty beat up." The young woman said. Even though Chopper had done a pretty good job at treating Luffy's wounds, the cuts and bruises were still visible. They made it look like the merman went to hell and back (which isn't far from the truth).

"He'll stay here for a while, just until he's healed enough. Then, I'll bring him to the sea where he belongs. It's the least I can do for him." Zoro told his sister. The man really looked guilty about his actions. Kuina couldn't imagine what was going through her brother's head right now. After all, being the cause of your friend's bad condition isn't something that's easily forgotten.

Kuina gave a small, reassuring smile. "Don't worry so much. He's going to be fine." She said trying to cheer Zoro up a little bit. The man sighed.

"That's not what I worry about. I'm worried about what he'll say to me when he wakes up.."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoyed. Thank you for reading!


	11. Chapter 11

Luffy slowly opened his eyes. Everything was blurry. The young merman blinked a few times before raising his hand to rub his eyes. He winched slightly in pain as he moved his limbs. His arms were really sore. Not only his arms, but the rest of his body hurt too.

It took a few seconds for him to see clearly again and when he finally did, he noticed that he wasn't in the same place where he had lost consciousness. He wasn't in the dark place he remembered he had been in not so long ago. Instead, he was in a small, light-blue room.

He then noticed to his surprise that he was in a tub filled with water. The tub was a bit too small for his body, but he didn't mind that. He was happy nonetheless. It was good to be back in the water again, even if it wasn't the lake where he lives.

He also saw the state his body was in. He was covered form head to tail in cuts and bruises. No wonder his body ached so much. Some of the cuts had stitches in them, meaning that someone had cared for them.

The merman laid still in the water for several minutes recalling what had happened. Some of his memories were a bit hazy, but he could remember most of what had happened.

He had been in some place with a man he vaguely remembered for his past. It was an evil man. That man had done horrible, painful things to him. He remembered getting kicked, punched, stabbed and other kinds of things like that. But he especially remembered the things the man had said to him.

Luffy knew Zoro was the one who had brought him to that man. He still couldn't believe his friend had done that. What did he ever do to Zoro to be put through all that? He thought he was his friend!

After Zoro had left him, the man he was brought to entered the cage and began to torture him. Luffy had yelled at him to stop, that Zoro would come to take him away from here and that he would beat the man up if he saw what he had done to him. The man had only smirked and began to tell him that Zoro never cared about him. That Zoro had only put up with him so he could easily catch him later. That Zoro cared more about money than about a monster like him.

And, after hours of the man telling him this and no sign of Zoro returning to take him back, Luffy began to believe him.

What other reason could there possibly be for Zoro to abandon him like this other than not really caring about him? He really had been stupid to trust a human.

After that, he just gave up. He let the man do whatever he wanted with him. There wasn't anything he could do anyway. He was weak against a human while on land. There was no possible way for him to get out of there by himself.

That made him wonder, who _did _get him out of there?__

____

__

At that moment someone entered the room. The merman was so lost in thought that he didn't notice that at first. It was only when the person spoke up that he discovered that he was no longer alone.

"You're awake."

Luffy flinched hard at the familiar voice. The sharkman turned his head sharply to the source of the sound. His eyes widen when his gaze fell on Zoro and a sense of fear filled him. Why was _he _here?__

____

____

Zoro had just returned from the kitchen after a brief break. He had been sitting in the bathroom waiting for Luffy to wake up ever since he brought the merman here. He had gone to the kitchen for something to drink barely five minutes ago. He hadn't expected to find the creature awake when he returned.

The look of fear Luffy gave him struck the man hard. He was sure the merman would have hidden himself if he had the chance. Luffy was afraid of him and the only one to blame for that was Zoro himself.

The man slowly approached the bathtub and noticed how the merman tried to get further away from him. Luffy visibly winched in pain as his wounds bumped against the side of the tub. It really pained Zoro to see his friend like this.

Was he even still allowed to call Luffy his friend after all the pain and suffering he had put him through?

Zoro stopped walking once he was standing right next to the tub. He waited momentarily to see the creature's reaction. Luffy didn't move. He only stared at the other with fearful eyes. He was probably wondering what was going to happen to him now.

The two stared at each other for a while without saying anything. Then, after several long seconds, Zoro finally started to speak.

"I'm sorry."

There was a slight hesitation before the man continued. "I'm so, so sorry for what I did to you. And I know _sorry _isn't going to cut it, but I want you to know that I really regret what I've done." And with that, Zoro sunk to his knees in front of the bathtub and bowed his head. "I know you probably don't want to, but if you can.. Please, forgive me."__

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The merman stared at the other with wide eyes after those words. The fear he had felt moments ago slowly vanished. Zoro was apologizing to him and he knew the man was being honest. But..

The fear inside of him faded away. The fear made place for anger.

"Zoro," The man spoken to raised his head and choked on his breath as he saw the furious glare the other man was giving him. He swallowed and braced himself for what was to come.

Luffy rose slightly from the water as he stared down at the man kneeling in front of the tub. "Zoro," He began once again. The sharkman forced himself to take a deep breath to calm himself down.

"Why did you do it?" He asked. His voice was strangely calm and _cold _and it sent shivers down Zoro's spine. The older man opened his mouth to answer, but Luffy wouldn't let him.__

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"What did I ever do to you? Am I really not worth anything to you, Zoro?! I thought you were my friend!" Luffy yelled at the other. The green-haired man flinched at the sharp tone the creature used. The merman was well aware of the fact that he wasn't giving Zoro any time to explain his actions, but he just had to let his frustration out.

"I trusted you despite my bad history with humans. You make me feel like that was the worst decission I've ever made! You took advantage of my trust and just gave me away! Is that what I am to you?! Something _disposable _?!__

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Was our friendship just a joke to you? Did everything we did together mean nothing to you?" Although he wasn't yelling anymore, Luffy was still very angry. Not only that, but he was sad and disappointed as well.

Tears gathered in the corners of his eyes. "I just don't understand, Zoro. I thought you were a nice person and not like all the other humans I've encountered. Why did you do this to me?"

Zoro sighed as he saw Luffy's face. The teen was clearly upset and desperate for answers. The man was ashamed of himself. How could he ever have done something like that to this creature?

The man sat back on his heels and faced the black-haired teen. Luffy stared back at him as he waited for an answer. Zoro took a deep breath and started talking.

The man told Luffy everything. He told the teen about his sister's disease, the bounty on the merman's head, his original plan to capture the creature, the deal with the hunter and everything else. The sharkman listened to the story without interfering once.

When Zoro finished, Luffy stayed quiet. The merman had his arms crossed and had a frown on his face. He wasn't looking at Zoro and didn't react to the slight movements the man made, so the older man concluded that the teen must be deep in thought.

When the teen didn't say anything for another minute or two, the older man stood up from his place on the ground and sighed. If Luffy wasn't going to say anything, then there was no use to sitting here and doing nothing. Maybe he should get him something to eat. He was sure the merman must be hungry after everything that happened the last few days.

The man turned his back to the tub and started to leave the room. He almost exited the bathroom when the merman spoke, his words freezing the man in his place.

"I forgive you."

It took several seconds for Zoro to snap out of his shock. He turned around and stared at the teen in the bathtub. Luffy looked back at him with a small smile on his face. The other man was stunned by that. He had not expected to see Luffy smile at him ever again after what he had done.

"You said you did it to save your sister." The creature wiped his tears from earlier away before speaking again. "If I were in your place, and this was the only chance I had at saving one of my siblings, I would've done the same. I have two older brothers and I would do anything to help them. So, I forgive you." The teen said.

The older man couldn't believe what he had just heard. Luffy had forgiven him. Even though he had put the merman through hell, he had forgiven him!

"I.." Zoro wasn't sure what to say. The man then gave the merman a relieved smile. "Thank you."

The comfortable silence that followed their conversation was interrupted by a growling sound. Luffy groaned. "Hungry.." He whined. The older man almost chuckled. "Should I get you something to eat?" He asked though he already knew the answer.

The sharkman nodded. "Okay, I'll be right back." Zoro said. The man then turned around and left the room with a small smile on his face. He entered the kitchen and began to look for something Luffy could eat. A few seconds later, his sister's voice suddenly spoke from the doorway. "I heard yelling. I guess he has woken up?"

The man turned to face Kuina. "Yeah, he has." He said. The woman walked closer to her brother and leaned on the table standing in the kitchen. "And? How did it go?" She asked. Zoro grabbed a piece of raw meat, which he knew Luffy liked most, while answering. "He was mad at first, which is what I expected him to be. But then, after I explained everything, he forgave me." The man's voice told Kuina that he couldn't quite fathom this.

The young woman smiled. "That's good news. I'm glad." She said. Zoro smiled as well. The man stood up and grabbed a bowl. He cut the raw meat in smaller pieces before putting them into the bowl. He then turned to face his sister.

"I'm going back to Luffy. Do you want to come with me so you can meet him?" He asked. The young woman stayed silent for a few seconds before nodding. "Sure, why not." Zoro smiled and turned around as he began to make his way to the bathroom, gesturing his sister to follow him.

* * *

Luffy sighed as he tried to submerge himself fully in the tub. Zoro had left a few minutes ago and had yet to return. This gave the merman time to think about everything.

Zoro hadn't been the only one who was surprised the teen forgave the man so quickly. Luffy himself was slightly shocked as well. His friend had betrayed him and brought him to a place that caused him a lot of pain. Still, he easily forgave him for what he had done.

But could he still trust this man? Was he safe in the place he was now? A small part of him was telling him not to trust Zoro anymore. That only more harm would come from that. But most of him knew that Zoro was a good person, even though he had done something very bad to him. He knew the green-haired man had spoken the truth when he told him that he really regretted what he had done. He was almost certain that the man wouldn't hurt him in such a way ever again.

So, to be honest, Luffy felt like he had done the right thing when he forgave Zoro. Sure, he had been fairly quick to this, but he had never really been a person who held grudges against someone. Everyone makes mistakes, right?

Another minute passed before Luffy heard footsteps approaching. Zoro entered the room a few seconds later, followed by a young woman Luffy didn't recognize. The green-haired man crouched down next to the tub and gave the merman a bowl with pieces of meat. The creature took the bowl from the other man's hands, but kept his gaze on the third person in the room.

"Luffy, this is my sister Kuina." Zoro explained as he noticed the way the teen looked at the for him unknown woman in the room. Kuina gave a small wave at the merman, who returned the gesture.

"It's nice to meet you, Luffy." The young woman said with a smile. The sharkman stared at her for a short while before turning his gaze to the bowl of meat in his hands without saying anything.

Kuina didn't seem to mind that the merman hadn't spoken to her yet. She hadn't expected him to. After all, she was partly the cause of the suffering the teen had gone through. The woman moved her hand to her mouth as she suddenly started coughing badly. She grabbed a tissue from her pocket and wiped her hand and mouth once the fit was over.

Kuina's sudden coughing fit had startled Luffy a bit. He looked back at Zoro's sister and stared at her as she crumbled the tissue she was holding and threw it in a nearby bin. He could see that Kuina looked sick. She was pale and overall just didn't look healthy. 'She really must be very ill.' Luffy thought.

The merman's stomach grumbled again so the teen looked back at the bowl of meat in his hands. He stared at the pieces for a moment as he remembered the day Zoro had taken him away from the lake. He remembered that the meat he had eaten that day tasted weird and that he had passed out not long after consuming it. Putting two and two together, he had concluded that Zoro must have put something in the meat that had caused the merman to fall asleep.

"Is something wrong?" Zoro carefully asked when the merman hadn't started eating his food yet after almost two full minutes. It was very unlike Luffy. The creature normally scarfed down his food within seconds. He quickly realized the problem when Luffy started to poke the meat and smelled it for any kind of abnormalities.

"There is nothing wrong with the meat. I didn't put anything in it, Luffy. I promise." The green-haired man said to reassure the merman. The creature looked up at the other for any sign of a lie, but turned his gaze back to the bowl when he found none. Slowly, Luffy grabbed a piece of meat and raised it to his mouth. He opened his jaws and took a small bite of the meat. When he didn't taste any kind of unusual flavor in his food, the teen swallowed the meat before grabbing a new piece from the bowl.

When after the second and third piece nothing bad had happened, Luffy discarded the possibility of something being wrong with the food and began eating the rest of it. Though he ate slower than normal, Luffy still managed to finish his food at a rather fast pace. After he returned the now empty bowl to Zoro, he asked a question that had been on his mind for a little while.

"Where are we?" Zoro looked at him with a look that said he had totally forgotten to tell the teen that. "We're in the house Kuina and I are temporally staying at. I brought you here because I thought it would be the safest option." The green-haired man explained.

Luffy nodded in understanding. They stayed quiet for a short while before the creature asked another question. "When will you bring me back to the lake?"

The older man stared at him for a few seconds before answering. "Well, I wasn't exactly planning on bringing you back to the lake." He said. Luffy frowned. Was Zoro trying to keep him here? He was about to complain when the other said something else that made the sharkman freeze in place.

"I thought that it would be a better idea to bring you back to the ocean. Only if you want me to, of course."

The merman stared at the other man with wide eyes. Did he hear that right? Images of his family and friends he had been taken from so many years ago started to flood his mind.

Was he really going to see them again?

Tears started to gather in his eyes as he looked at the green haired man. "D-Do you mean that? Can you r-really bring me home?" He asked, his voice trembling with emotion. Zoro nodded with a smile. "Of course I can."

Luffy sniffed as tears started to flow down his face without his permission. He tried to wipe the tears away, but it was useless. They just kept coming. He was just so overwhelmed and happy that he couldn't seem to stop himself.

Zoro was relieved that there was something he could do to help the merman. He reached his hand out to Luffy to give the teen a comforting pat on the shoulder, but was caught off guard when the creature grabbed his arm and pulled him into the tub to give him a chest-crushing hug.

"Thank you." The sharkman said as he continued to sob. The older man recovered from the slight shock of suddenly being pulled into the water and returned the embrace to the other. His clothes were all wet now, but Zoro couldn't care less about that. He only felt a bit awkward laying there with one leg over the edge of the bathtub and the rest of his body on top of the black-haired teen.

Kuina smiled at the sight before her. Judging from the way her brother and the merman were interacting, it seems like everything was going to be fine between the two of them.

The young woman stepped outside the room when she felt another coughing fit coming. She walked to the living room where she knew she was out of hearing range. She didn't want to ruin the moment with her sickness.

Even though her disease was getting worse every day, and there was no way she was going to survive until next year, she was happy. Seeing her brother interact with Luffy in a way she never saw him with his other friends made her realize just how important this friendship was for Zoro.

As long as her brother was happy, Kuina didn't mind suffering.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I made a little piece of fanart of this fanfiction. It's kinda like a scene from this chapter (a sad/grumpy Luffy sitting in the bathtub). It gives a little bit of an idea how Luffy looks as a merman/sharkman. You can find it on my DeviantArt page (FireArrowAce) if you're interested! 
> 
> I plan to make another piece of fanart for the last or second to last chapter when things are happier. That being said, this story won't last very long anymore. Just a few more chapters to go, I think. Don't worry though, the next one won't be the last. 
> 
> Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this chapter!


	12. Chapter 12

Two days had passed since Zoro had brought the merman to his and his sister's house. The previous days were mostly spent with the two men talking about random things and Kuina occasionally joining the conversation.

Because the bathtub was a bit too small for Luffy, Zoro had the _wonderful _idea to place a small pool in the middle of the living room. This almost resulted in water damage on the wooden floor. Although Kuina had scolded her brother for almost ruining the floor of a house that wasn't even theirs, she didn't complain about there being a pool in the living room.__

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Zoro sighed in satisfaction when he had finally completely filled the small pool with water. While this normally wouldn't be a hard job, the hose he was going to use apparently had a hole in it somewhere and he had to use buckets instead. It took him about an hour and a half to fill the entire thing as he had to walk back and forth between the kitchen and the pool.

The man made his way to the bathroom that still held his merman friend. He walked through the doorway and was met with a pair of curious eyes.

"Just what are you doing over there? You were making a lot of noise not long ago." Luffy asked. Zoro gave a small smile. He hadn't said anything about the pool to his friend yet. He wanted to surprise him with it. The pool might not be as large as the lake the merman used to live in, _of course it's not _, but it was at least four times bigger than the bathtub he was in now. In other words, it was some kind of improvement.__

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Without saying anything, the green-haired man bent down and moved his arms under the merman's arms and tail. "Zoro, what are you-" Luffy let out a yelp as he was lifted out of the bathtub without any kind of warning. The sharkman grasped his friend's shirt as if his life depended on it as the other man carried him out of the bathroom. Although he was slightly afraid he would fall, Luffy looked around at his surroundings in wonder. He had only ever seen the inside of the bathroom, so he was seeing a lot of new things now.

It wasn't a very long journey as they arrived at their supposed destination only fifteen seconds later. When they entered the large room, Luffy took in all the different kinds of objects in the room. But what caught his attention the most was the pool that took in most of the space inside the room.

"I thought that you might like some more room to move around in." Zoro said as he carried the sharkman to the pool. He lowered his friend to the water and dropped him the last few inches into the clear liquid.

The black-haired teen quickly recovered from the sudden contact with the water and looked around in the pool. Unlike in the bathtub, he could now completely submerge himself in the water and he even had some space left to swim around in. This was a big improvement.

"Thank you, Zoro!" Luffy said with a bright smile. His friend waved off his gratitude. "It's only temporarily. Just until you're ready to back to the sea where you belong." The older man said. The merman nodded in understanding, though the smile didn't falter.

The green-haired man settled himself on the couch next to the pool. "Speaking of which, we still need to figure out a way to get you back to your home. I don't know where you came from and I doubt that you remember the way home from here." He said to the other. The merman closed his eyes in thought to see if he could remember any useful information. After a short while he opened his eyes again and spoke.

"You're right, I don't know where my home is. But I do remember hearing the name of a place that was supposedly near my home. I don't really remember exactly what the name was. 'Down' or something. I don't know if that helps though." Luffy told his friend. The other man thought about that name. _Down _, hadn't he read about something like that once?__

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The answer suddenly popped up in the green-haired man's head. "Wait, do you mean Dawn Island?" He asked. The sharkman's eyes lit up at the name. "Yeah, that's it! My home is near Dawn Island." He confirmed with a grin. He felt proud for remembering something like that.

Yeah, now Zoro remembered. He had read about an island named Dawn before he and Kuina moved here. He was looking for things he and his sister could do while staying here and found that you could take a boat trip to Dawn Island, an island very popular with tourists for some reason. It wasn't that far, only a few mile away from where they were now.

"Okay, so at least we now know in what direction to go." The older man said. "Do you think you would be able to find your village if you're in the right area?" Luffy shrugged at that question. "Probably. The 'entrance' used to be quite recognizable, so if it's still the same then yes." Zoro nodded in understanding.

With that out of the way, the two of them started to talk about other things. Since Luffy would return to his home soon they didn't have too much time left together. So they spent most time just talking or playing board games that Zoro had taught Luffy how to play.

* * *

It was morning. Zoro and Kuina had yet to come downstairs, so Luffy was the only one in the living room.

He had only been here for a few days and his injuries were already almost fully healed. That meant that he would be going back to his family and friends soon. But that also meant he would have to say goodbye to Zoro and Kuina. And that was something that was bothering him.

Although Zoro had done something bad to him a few days ago, he still was a really good friend. His best friend. He would certainly miss him. And even though he hadn't known Kuina for too long, he could tell that she is a really good person as well. The thought of not being near them anymore made him sad.

Of course, they could try to arrange to meet each other after some time even if that wouldn't be so easy, but that didn't guarantee that he would see them both again.

Kuina was dying. And she could pass away any day.

While he hadn't interacted much with the woman the first day he was here, he had gotten to know her better when time passed on. To know that such a kind-hearted person had such an incurable disease pained him.

Talking with Zoro about his home yesterday had made old memories come back to him. One of the things he now could recall was an incident years ago, only a few weeks before he was taken away from his home. A very sick merman had come to his village after being denied help at any other villages he had come across. Their doctor then healed him from what was supposed to be an incurable sickness.

If that merman could get healed from his disease, then maybe-

"Good morning." A voice suddenly said from next to him, snapping him from his thoughts. He watched as Zoro sat down on the couch with a glass of water and a piece of bread in his hands.

"Kuina will come down in half an hour or so. Do you want something to eat or drink?" The green-haired man asked. Luffy shook his head. The other shrugged and took a sip of his water before starting on his bread.

After a short silence, Luffy suddenly spoke up. "Hey Zoro," He began. The other man looked at his friend as he finished his food and took another sip of his water. The merman hesitated for a moment before actually voicing his thoughts.

"I think there still might be a way to save Kuina."

Zoro almost choked in his water.

"What?!" The green-haired man all but yelled in shock, water dripping from his mouth. Luffy flinched slightly at the loudness but said nothing of it. Instead, he straightened his posture to look at his friend with a more serious expression on his face.

"A few weeks before I was taken from my home, I found a very sick merman near my village. I took him to our doctor only to discover that he had some kind of incurable disease. But our doctor still managed to heal him despite the stranger telling her it was impossible. She healed him with _magic _."__

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Zoro blinked in disbelieve. "Magic exists?" He asked in wonder. He then stared at the living and breathing 'mythical' creature in front of him and suddenly found the idea of magic existing not so far-fetched.

Luffy rubbed the back of his head. "Well, maybe not real magic. That's what I called it at that time. I was told that, while every merman and mermaid have the ability to heal fast, some merpeople have a power that allows them to not only heal themselves, but other merfolk as well. And if their 'magic' is strong enough they can even heal something that was dubbed incurable."

"So, you're trying to say that this 'magic thing' some merpeople have can cure my sister?" Zoro asked. The other shrugged. "I'm not sure, but we could at least give it a try. It may be the last chance we have." He said. Zoro nodded at that. His sister was almost out of time, so all ideas were appreciated.

There was a five second pause before one of them spoke again. "Well uh.. how do we find someone who can heal Kuina? Do you think that doctor of yours is still around?" The green-haired man asked. Luffy sighed. "Honestly, I don't know. She was pretty old when I left, so she might have passed away by now." The teen then smiled reassuringly. "But I'm sure there's someone who can help us!"

Now that he knew there still might be hope for his sister, Zoro smiled a little brighter. "I guess all that rests is to rent a boat and find your home. You're healed enough to go back, so there's no reason to keep you away from the place where you belong." The older man said. "Yeah.." The younger man replied and hesitated for a moment before speaking again. "Hey Zoro, I was wondering. I-is there a way for you to come with me to my village? I mean, your my friend and I would like to show you around and, you know, then you can meet my friends and family!"

Zoro could only stare at the other's wide smile with a shocked expression. Luffy wanted him to come with him? Was that really okay though? He wanted to, but what would Luffy's family and friends think if he brought a human to the merfolk village?

Zoro voiced his concern. "If I can rent a diving suit somewhere, then yes. But wouldn't the people in your village get angry? I mean, it was humans who took you away from them, so they have the right to be mad at humans." Luffy frowned before shaking his head. "I'm sure it will be fine if I say that you're my friend. I don't think they would want to make me upset by sending you away."

Zoro wasn't totally convinced yet, but he didn't argue. Instead, he gave the other a smile. "Then, I would be happy to come with you." The merman's smile returned even brighter than before as he cheered. "That's great! I can't wait for you to meet everyone."

After about an hour of chatting with each other, Kuina joining them halfway through, Zoro left his friend and sister in order to go to his bedroom to do something. When he arrived there, he grabbed his laptop and opened it. He went to the internet and started to search for boats to rent in the area.

The green-haired man smiled softly. There were tons of boats available to rent for a fairly low price. Diving suits too. If he can find the right one, they can sail either tomorrow or the day after. He was glad for that, because only when Luffy had finally returned to his home he could be happy.

Only then Zoro could truly forgive himself for what he had done to his friend.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the last chapter I can repost from Fanfiction.net. The next chapter will come out here at the same time as on Fanfiction once I finish writing it.
> 
> Also, I just wanted to say that the next chapter or the one after that is going to be the last. This story is almost done! I also have something extra ready for next chapter (aka drawing :) ) so that's something else you can look forward to (or not).
> 
> I hope you enjoyed and thank you for reading!


	13. Chapter 13

"Are you two ready?" Zoro asked from behind the helm. His sister and the merman both nodded. The green-haired man smiled and started the boat. He had rented the vessel two days ago and he even managed to get a pretty decent diving suit at the last moment. 

Getting Luffy on the boat had been surprisingly easy since there was no one around at the docks so he didn't need to be sneaky. To keep him from drying out while he was out of the water, Zoro and Kuina had taken several towels that they would occasionally soak in water and put on the merman's tail. 

The three of them had used the past two days to get everything ready for the trip. Today was the big day. Today they would try to find Luffy's home.

While Zoro steered the boat in the right direction, Kuina and Luffy were on deck looking at the ocean around them. Kuina tried to enjoy the view as much as possible because she knew this was probably the last time she would be able to see it. Luffy on the other hand was looking at the water with an excited glint in his eyes. He hadn't seen the ocean in years. Somewhere in these waters lived his family and friends and he was on his way to finally see them again.

It wasn't long before they reached Dawn Island. It was a popular island and easy to find. Now their greatest task was about to begin. Dawn wasn't the biggest island out there, but the shoreline was a quite a few miles long and they had no idea where Luffy's home was located.

Zoro slowed the boat to a stop before approaching Luffy. "Are you ready?" He asked. The sharkman looked up at the human with a determined look on his face and nodded. The green-haired man then removed the wet towels from his friend's tail and lifted the merman up with little difficulty. Luffy knew where they were going. At the back of the boat there was a little ramp for swimmers to get in and out of the water. They were going to use that to get him in the water as well.

They made their way to the ramp and Zoro gently lowered the other onto the ground. Luffy looked at the water with excitement, but also nervousness. What if his family and friends didn't live here anymore? What if he can't find the city? What if-

"Hey," Luffy felt his friend's hand on his shoulder. He looked up at the other beside him. Zoro gave him a small smile. "It'll be fine, so don't worry too much." The teen looked back at the water and nodded. 

It would be fine, wouldn't it?

Luffy look a deep breath to calm himself. He then finally entered the water. The cold seawater didn't bother him too much. Only his eyes stung because of the salt. As soon as he managed to open his eyes under water, he gasped at the sight of all the colourful fish and corals. He watched fish, big and small, swim around him and the boat. A familiar feeling of home came to him. He belonged in this sea.

Despite being close to the island, the sea was surprisingly deep. Bigger fish could be seen slightly more down. The shore of Dawn was just beyond his sight, but he could see anchored boats in the distance.

The sharkman didn't recognize his surroundings yet, but then again the area around Dawn Island was pretty large. That's why he and Zoro agreed that Zoro would sail the boat slowy around the island while Luffy observed the sea from below to see if he recognised any of it. When he _did _recognize his surroundings, he would inform his friend and Zoro would enter the water with him to look for the teen's home.__

____

As they made their way around the island Luffy did his utmost best to try to remember where his home was located. When he lived there he hadn't been outside of his city a lot because he was so young, but he was sure that he would know when he was close.

He would recognize his home for sure.

* * *

Little over an hour had passed since they started their search when Luffy finally got the feeling he had seen this place before. Before him was a part of the ocean where the bottom was covered in tall, stone pillars. The sharkman kept looking around a little longer to be sure he had seen this place before he decided to inform Zoro about it. 

The teen swam to the surface and broke through. "Zoro, stop the boat!" He yelled at his friend, which the other man did. The green-haired man quickly appeared at the rail of the boat and looked down at Luffy.

"You think this is the right spot?" The man asked. Luffy nodded. "I hope so. This area looks familiar." He replied. Zoro looked at the water for a second before looking back at the teen. "I'll be right back. I'm going to put the anchor out and put on my diving suit. See you in a few minutes." The man then disappeared from behind the rail. Luffy looked back at his surroundings. He felt nervousness slowly fill his body again. He really hoped this was the right place.

"Luffy," The merman heard from the ship. He looked up to see Kuina standing at the rail. She was a bit unsteady on her feet, but he didn't comment. She smiled at him. "I don't know if you'll come back up after you've found your city, but just in case I won't see you again I wanted to say that I wish you the best of luck. You're a great friend for both me and my brother and I will miss your company." She said. Luffy smiled back at her. "I will miss you two too, Kuina. I'll be sure to come say goodbye later. I have to get Zoro back to the ship anyway. You know how hopeless he is with directions." They both laughed. 

"I'm ready." Zoro's voice said from behind Kuina. The young woman looked around and tried not to laugh. The diving suit Zoro was wearing looked a bit too small for him. Zoro didn't look too pleased being the source of his sister's amusement, but didn't say anything.

The man approached the ramp at the back of the ship and sat at the edge, feet dangling in the water. He looked back at Kuina. "I'll be back as soon as possible. Don't do anything stupid." He said with a grin. Kuina sighed. "I should be the one to say that." She muttered with a small smile. Zoro adjusted his goggles and put in his mouthpiece. He then swiftly entered the water.

It took him a few seconds to get used to the temperature of the water. The man looked around and was quite surprised at the large amount of rocks in this part of the ocean. He was relieved to see that none were high enough to possible damage the boat. A sudden hand on his arm startled him a little before he realized it was just his merman friend. Luffy laughed a bit at the other's reaction before he began to swim downwards, Zoro following him. 

The sharkman had to slow down and wait for his friend multiple times during their decend. Luffy's tail made the teen very fast in the water, so Zoro wasn't really able to keep up. After about three minutes of Luffy basically swimming in circles around a (very) slow Zoro, the teen finally had enough and grabbed the other's hand to tug him along as he continued to swim down, this time at a much faster pace.

Once they arrived at the bottom of the sea, Luffy let go of his friend and began to swim around in search of his home. Zoro, of course, didn't know what to look for as he had never seen the teen's home before. He just swam around looking for anything unusual that could possibly be connected to the teen's city while also keeping track of where Luffy was going. The teen was swimming left and right without a clear path. Sometimes he would stop to inspect some random pillar, but then continue his search. 

This continued for about twenty minutes. Zoro started to get worried that they wouldn't find it in time before his air supply ran out. Just then Luffy's behaviour seemed to change a bit. He began to look around at a more frantic pace like he was really recognizing his surroundings. 

Suddenly, Luffy stopped. He stared at something in front of him for a few long seconds. The sharkman then swam back to Zoro at high speed. The teen grabbed his hand again and began to tug him towards the place he had been just a few seconds ago.

When they arrived there, Luffy slowed to a halt. His eyes were focused on a particular large set of pillars in front of them. At first, Zoro didn't see anything out of the ordinarily about those pillars. Then, he noticed that there was a hole in the ground in between the pillars, a few air bubbles coming out of it.

Is this what they were looking for?

The merman swam closer to the hole, Zoro being pulled along once again. When they were close enough, the sharkman pointed at a carving just above the opening. It didn't look like anything abnormal, but then the green-haired man noticed that the carving had an actual shape to it. It looked like the image of a sun.

He looked back at Luffy and was met with a big grin. The merman swam to the hole and motioned for Zoro to come closer. The man did so and followed the merman as he entered the hole. The hole itself was only about ten feet deep, but it led to a long, narrow underground tunnel. 

The tunnel was one-way, but it had many twists and turns. Luffy, being an experienced swimmer, maneuvered through it without any problem. Zoro, on the other hand, had trouble not colliding with the stone walls around him. He bumped into them a few times, but luckily his diving gear didn't sustain any damage. Luffy was patient enough to wait for his friend at every turn despite the adrenaline rushing through the younger man's veins.

It took them a little while to get through the whole thing. Luckily, there were no sideways to get lost in. Then finally, after several minutes of swimming through the cave, light could be seen in the distance. Luffy instinctively began to swim faster to get to the light, so it wasn't a surprise he was the one to break the surface first. It took Zoro almost a minute longer to get to where his friend was. When Zoro finally broke the surface he could only gape at the sight in front of him.

It was just as Luffy had described to him. A small city build in a huge underwater cave. The cave was so big that it must have been located right underneath Dawn island. Surprisingly, most of the cave was filled with air instead of water. There was a small river leading towards the city, connecting it to the outside ocean they just came from. 

Zoro removed his goggles and mouthpiece. He wanted to say something, but nothing came out. He looked at his friend, who looked like he might cry of happiness. The man smiled and patted the teen's shoulder. 

"You're finally home." Was the only thing he could think of saying. Luffy swallowed and grinned. "Yes, I am."

They began to make their way through the narrow river towards the city. The river was not very deep and Zoro could just walk through the water instead of swimming. Surprisingly, they hadn't seen any merpeople yet despite being so close. They were almost halfway there when suddenly something shot up from the water in front of them, startling the young men.

"You two are trespassing. What are you doing here!" The looming figure in front of them demanded. The man, no, _fishman _towered over the both of them and looked at them with an intimidating gaze. The fishman had legs instead of a tail and had blue skin. Zoro frowned and instinctively reached his hand to his side. Damn, he left his swords on the boat. He glanced at his sharkman friend beside him to see how he was reacting to this unexpected obstacle. However, the teen didn't seem intimidated in the slighted. He seemed happy, even.__

____

"Jinbei?"

The man looked down at the young merman in surprise. "Who are you?" He asked in slight confusion. Luffy grinned after hearing the man's voice once again. "Why are you so mean, Jinbei? Don't you remember me?" He replied with fake betrayal in his voice. A few seconds of silence passed before something clicked in the fishman's brain and eyes widened in realization.

"Luffy? Is that you?" The teen laughed and launched himself out of the water and onto the fishman, who caught him with ease. "It's been such a long time! I missed you!" Luffy said with a slight tremble in his voice. Jinbei stood there stunned. Then, the fishman smiled. "You've grown, Luffy." Luffy just laughed. "I'm so happy to be back! I have so much to tell you and everyone else!"

After a moment Jinbei set the younger man back down in the water. Luffy didn't waste a second as he started talking about where he had been and and who Zoro was. He would've said more if jinbei hadn't put his hand up to silence him.

"You can tell me everything that you went through later. I'm sure you want to find your brothers first, right?" Luffy nodded enthusiastically. Jinbei looked at the entrance of the cave in thought before shrugging. "I'm sure no one will mind if I leave my post for a bit." He then looked back at the other two. "I'm not sure where Sabo is, but I can bring you to Ace. He's hanging out with some friends in the pool at the other side of town."

Luffy grinned. "Yes, bring us to him! I can't wait to see him again!" He exclaimed with glee. He then paused for a moment and looked at Zoro. His friend was the only human here and from what he remembered, humans were not allowed in his city.

"Jinbei, will it be okay for Zoro to come with us? I want him to meet my brothers." Luffy asked slightly concerned. The older fishman thought for a moment. "Well, humans are normally not allowed here, but for him I can make an exception. As long as he stays near us others will figure out he is here with my permission." He said as he looked at the human. The green-haired man nodded. "Okay, I understand." He replied shortly.

Luffy smiled. "Let's go. Jinbei, lead the way!" He said. The fishman nodded and began to walk in the direction of the city. The young sharkman followed immediately after. Zoro watched his friend's happiness with a smile as he followed the two fishman from behind. He was glad everything was turning out alright after all.

* * *

As they made their way through the city, the merfolk around the three gave them weird looks. Whispers could be heard from all directions. Zoro felt a bit nervous with all those eyes on them. Luffy didn't seem to have any problem with it. But then again, Luffy was a merman himself and didn't have to worry about anything. Zoro was a human. Who knows how they would react to his presents.

Jinbei led them past houses and shops as they traveled through the streets. The way the city was laid out was that every street had two sidewalks and one 'water path' in between them. This way those with a tail could swim in the water path and those with legs could walk on the sidewalks. Some shops had water paths as well, but not all of them. 

Zoro and Jinbei were walking on one of the sidewalks and Luffy swam along in the water path. The young merman, of course, was looking around in excitement, pointing at buildings he remembered from his childhood and new ones he didn't recognize.

The city was bigger than the human had expected. It took them well over twenty minutes to get to the pool Jinbei said Luffy's brother would be. When they finally arrived there, they found that the water path ended in the pool so that Luffy was now swimming inside of it. The sidewalks went all the way around the pool.

The pool area itself was like a beach for merpeople. Several mermaids and mermen were located on rocks with towels, drinks and even sunglasses even though there was no sun.

From the corner of his eye the green-haired man could see his friend looking at all the different merfolk in search of his brother. From the look on his face he hadn't found him yet. Then again, Luffy hadn't seen him in years and had no idea what his brother looked like now. Jinbei looked around too, and he seemed to have more luck at finding who they were looking for. The fishman continued his way along the side of the pool towards a small group of mermen. Both Zoro and Luffy followed him.

"Hey Ace!" The man shouted. The mermen all looked his way at the sound of his voice and greeted him in a friendly manner. One of them, a young dark-haired merman with a bright orange, almost golden tail, looked at the fishman with a raised eyebrow.

"What is it, Jinbei? Do you need me for something?" The merman, who appeared to be Ace, asked in slight confusion. Zoro heard a small gasp beside him and looked down at the water to see Luffy stare at the other merman with wide eyes. He was trembling slightly as tears began to gather in his eyes.

"I have someone here who you need to see." Jinbei replied. The merman stared at Jinbei for a few more seconds before his eyes shifted to the two standing/swimming beside the man. His eyes narrowed a bit at the sight of the human, but as his eyes fell on the merman in the water beside the human, he froze.

The two mermen stared at each other, both unable to say anything. The other mermen on the rock looked confused at Ace's reaction, but then slowly started to put two and two together. They all knew about the brother Ace lost so many years ago.

Slowly, Ace descended from the rock he and his friends were on, eyes focused on Luffy. The merman in front of him looked back at him with tears in his eyes. The teen's lips were trembling with emotion as he did his best not to break down. "A-Ace?"

That was the last straw. The older merman launched himself at Luffy and wrapped his arms around him. The force the older brother had used almost made the both of them go under. The teen held onto his brother like he was his lifeline as he tried and failed to keep his tears at bay.

"I m-missed y-you so much!" Luffy whimpered in between sobs. His brother wasn't much better off. Ace was slowly but surely becoming a sobbing mess as well. His little brother was alive and back with him after so many years! 

It took the brothers a while to compose themselves, but after a few minutes they parted just enough to get a good look at each other's features. They both had grown a lot since the last time they saw each other over eleven years ago. Ace looked at his younger brother with a small smile on his face.

"You've grown a lot, Luffy." He said as he ruffled his brother's hair. Luffy laughed and gave the other another hug. "You too." The teen then smirked. "I bet I'm stronger than you now!" This made the older merman laugh. "No way! I'm still three years older than you!" Ace said as he put his brother in a headlock, earning another laugh from the younger merman.

Luffy then looked up at his brother. "Where's Sabo?" He asked. Ace smiled at him. "He's probably at his job. Wanna go look for him?" Luffy nodded. Ace grinned. "All right, let's go. But first," He turned his gaze to the only human in the city with both curiosity and slight distrust. "Who's he?"

Luffy's face lit up. "That's Zoro. He's my friend! He helped me get back home!" He answered. "Zoro! This is my brother Ace!" He yelled at the green-haired human. Zoro gave a small wave, still feeling a bit out of place in this world of merpeople. Ace, though still a little bit wary of the human, gave Zoro a smile and waved back. "It's nice to meet you, Zoro. Thank you for bringing my little brother back." He said with a small bow.

Zoro smiled. "Don't worry about it. It's the least I could do for him." He said truthfully. Luffy grinned at him before looking back at his brother. Ace smiled and looked at his friends still on the rock. "Hey, I'll be gone for a little bit. See you all later!" He said with a wave. They understood and said goodbye. Ace then looked back at his younger brother.

"Alright, let's go find Sabo."

* * *

On the way to his other brother, Luffy talked with Ace about all the different things he had seen in the city and his brother told him about all that changed in the years he had been gone. Of course, Luffy would tell him about his experiences too, but that was a story to tell when he was together with both of his brothers.

They were now in front of the building Ace had led them to. "Sabo should be in here." Ace said. Luffy felt his nervousness creep up once again. Ace rang the bell next to door and waited. About ten seconds later a girl with brown hair answered the door. She didn't have a tail like Luffy and Ace, but everyone could see she wasn't human either as her skin had a pink colour. "Hey Ace, are you looking for Sabo?" She then noticed Luffy and Zoro. "Who are they?"

"We'll tell you later, but could you get Sabo here for us? Tell him it's urgent." Ace answered. The girl looked at them for another five seconds before she nodded and disappearing back inside. 

It took about two minutes before the small group heard footsteps approach the door from inside. The door opened again, but this time it was a blond man who appeared from inside. Again, he looked almost human with his two legs, but his skin had a slight blue-ish hue to it, indicating that he was also a fishman.

"Koala said you needed me. What is it this time, Ace? I have work to do, you know." The blond man sounded a little annoyed, but also curious to what was going on. The man looked at the two unknown men behind Ace and scanned them for any threat, especially the human. He stopped once his eyes landed on the young merman just behind his brother.

"Sorry to get you off your work, but I felt like this was more important than signing some papers." Ace said as he looked back at Luffy and gave the teen a reassuring smile. Sabo stared at the young sharkman with wide eyes. Luffy looked ready to cry for the second time today. No more words had to be said as Sabo dove at the younger merman and tackled him.

"Luffy!"

Luffy made a noice that sounded like something between a laugh and a sob as he and Sabo fell backwards into the water. They recovered quickly and soon Luffy was involved in another sobbing mess. Ace laughed and joined his brothers in a group hug that they hadn't had in years. Jinbei and Zoro just smiled at the pile of brothers.

Eventually, the brothers let go of each other. Luffy grinned at his older brothers. "I really missed you both. I have so much to tell you!" He said. The others smiled. "You have enough time to do that 'cause I'm not letting you go anywhere anytime soon." Ace said as he once again pulled his younger brother into a hug, much to Sabo's amusement.

"I didn't know you had become such a softy, Ace" The blonde said with a smirk. Ace rolled his eyes. "Weren't you the one who told me to be a nice brother?" He said with a grin.

While his brothers talked a thought popped up in Luffy's head. The teen looked up at his brothers. "Hey, is Dr. Kureha still around? I wanted to ask her about something." He asked. Ace and Sabo looked at each other before speaking. "No, Kureha left the city about three years ago. Her student took her place." Sabo answered. Luffy raised an eyebrow in curiosity. "Is the new doctor as good as her?" Ace nodded. "Yeah, he's really good. He helped us a lot. But why do you need the doctor? Is something wrong with you? Did someone hurt you?" He asked worriedly, already switching to overprotective big brother mode.

Luffy shook his head. "Don't worry, I'm fine. But I need the doctor's help for something. Can you show us the way?" He said gesturing to himself and Zoro. Ace and Sabo nodded at the same time. Luffy smiled in relief. "Thank you!"

Jinbei then spoke up. "Hey, I need to get back to my post. There isn't a watcher at the entrance right now. Ace, Sabo, see you two later. Luffy, I'd love to hear your stories later." He said. Luffy smiled at him.

"Thanks for the help Jinbei! I'll see you later!" Luffy said as he waved the fishman goodbye. Jinbei waved back before walking away. The young merman then turned to his brothers. "Let's go!" The older brothers nodded and began to lead Luffy and Zoro to the doctor's office.

* * *

After another small trip through town, Zoro, Luffy and his brothers were now in front of the doctor's office. Luffy was quite curious to see who was working here now Dr. Kureha had moved away. He stepped forward and knocked on the door. 

After a few seconds the door opened to reveal a merman with dark hair, a black and white spotted tail and a lot of tattoos. The man was clearly not pleased with being disturbed with whatever he was doing. He glared at Ace and Sabo.

"What did you two do this time?" He asked rather rudely. Luffy looked at the man, blinked, blinked again, and then smiled widely. 

"Traffy! It's you!" He yelled as he jumped on the startled man. The doctor flailed around for a few seconds before trying to pry the younger merman off him. "Could you not do that pl-" His words died in his mouth as he got a good look at who was currently clinging on him. "Wait, aren't you the kid who helped me all those years ago?" He asked. Luffy nodded and grinned. "I'm glad you're doing okay, Traffy!"

The man sighed. "It's Trafalgar Law." He corrected. "And you're.. Ruffy? Fluffy?" He wondered. "It's Luffy!" The teen pouted. "Right." 

The man finally managed to get the teen to let go of him and looked at him. "Why are you here? Do any of you need help?" He asked. Luffy bit his lip. "Well, not one of us, but a friend of me is very sick and I was wondering if you could help her?" Luffy asked. "What does she have?" Law asked in return. Luffy shrugged and looked at Zoro for support. Zoro sighed. "The disease she has is terminal. It's pretty rare and doesn't really have a name." He told the doctor.

Law looked at him for a few seconds. "She's a human, right?" Zoro nodded. "Family?" Zoro gritted his teeth. "Yes, she's my older sister." He answered truthfully. The merman looked at him in thought before sighing. "Bring me to her. I'll see what I can do." He told them. Luffy smiled brightly and lunged at him to give him another hug, but the doctor sidestepped to avoid being squashed to death (again). Zoro smiled, feeling slightly better now that he knew someone was at least going to attempt to save his sister. 

"If you have nothing to do, we can go now. She is on a boat just outside of this cave. The sooner, the better." Zoro said to Law. It wasn't like he didn't want to spend time in this underwater city, but Kuina had been on that boat on her own for a while now and he was a bit worried. Law nodded at him. Luffy, too, nodded before looking at his brothers. "You can stay here. It won't take long, I promise!" He said with a smile. 

Sabo frowned. "Absolutely not! I'm not letting you go out there. What if someone catches you again?" He said with concern clear in his voice. Ace, too, looked quite reluctant to let his long lost brother go out into the open sea again. Luckily, Law decided to step in.

"I'll keep an eye on your brother. I'll make sure he makes it back in one piece." The doctor reassured them. Law wasn't friends with the two brothers, but since they seem to cause trouble everywhere they went, he had treated them a lot in his time as a doctor. They seem to relax a little and finally gave in. "Fine, but if he has as much as one scratch when you return, I will kill you. Also, if you're not back in an hour I will personally swim up there and drag your asses back down here!" Ace said. Sabo just looked at him with that creepy 'don't mess with me' look in his eyes. 

"Fair enough." Law said as he closed the door of his office. He then looked back at Zoro and Luffy.

"Lead the way."

* * *

Kuina turned on her phone and looked at the time. Luffy and her brother had been gone for over two and a half hours now. She wasn't really that worried as she knew they would look out for each other. She wondered if they had found the city. They probably did, because they would have been back a few times to check up on her if they hadn't. 

She knew they, especially Zoro, were reluctant to leave her alone on the boat. She couldn't blame them, of course. Who wouldn't be worried about someone with her kind of health?

She sighed and looked at the ocean. Before her disease she never truly took the time to appreciate the world around her. The ocean truly was a beautiful thing. She was glad she got to see this place before leaving this world. 

Another coughing fit came up. She waited it out before grabbing her handkerchief and wiping her hand and mouth. While she had been hiding the fact she was coughing up blood, she knew her brother was aware of the fact that her time was coming. These past few days Zoro had been a bit off, and not only because of Luffy being with them. It was like he was mentally preparing himself for something. And that something was probably her passing.

Splashing sounds from the water snapped her from her thoughts. A second later she heard talking. She recognized the voice of who was speaking. She stood up from her chair and, although a bit unsteady, made her way over to the rail. She looked down at the water and was met with two familiar faces, and one she didn't recognize.

"Kuina, we're back! We found it!" Luffy yelled with a big smile. Zoro looked up at her and she could see relief wash over him.

They made their way over to the ramp. Zoro climbed out of the water and took off his headgear. Luffy and the other merman stayed in the water. Kuina greeted her brother with a hug, immediately regretting it as the cold water of his suit went straight through her shirt. She then turned her attention to the mermen in the water. 

"Welcome back, Luffy. Who's your friend?" She asked kindly. Luffy grinned. "This is Traffy! He's a doctor!" He answered. Kuina's smile fell a little at the mention of a doctor. Still, she didn't let it show as she introduced herself to the older merman.

"Hello, I'm Kuina. It's nice to meet you." She said as she knelt down and stretched her hand out to the merman. Law took her hand and shook it. "Trafalgar Law." He said. He then motioned to the ramp. "Could you please take a seat over here?"

Kuina, though doubting that the doctor could do something for her, did what her was told and sat down on the ramp, feet dangling in the water. The merman then turned to luffy. "Move back." He ordered and the younger merman did what him was told. He then turned to Zoro who was standing right behind his sister. "You too." The man did.

The doctor then turned his attention back to the young woman in front of him. "I need you to stay perfectly still and keep breathing in and out, okay?" He said. Kuina nodded and followed his order. 

The merman then stretched his left hand out in front of her and closed his eyes. For a few seconds nothing happened. Then, a blue light enfolded the girl. Everyone, except the doctor, gaped at the sight. It only lasted for a few seconds before disappearing again. Law then opened his eyes and looked at the shocked human in front of him.

"Your disease is a tough one. It is shutting down all you internal systems, especially the lungs. That's why you have been coughing up blood for a while now. If I were to guess, I'd say you will die within a day or two." Kuina stared at the man. How was he able to know all this in just a few seconds while her doctors took months to diagnose her? And how did he know about her coughing up blood?

Zoro flinched as he heard the estimated time his sister had left. She had less than a week left to live! If Trafalgar couldn't cure her, then..

The doctor took in the reactions of those around him. He saw how confused Kuina looked, and how worried Zoro was. He sighed, then smiled. "Luckily for you, this disease is pretty well-known with us merfolk and has been treatable for years. I can help you." 

Kuina's eyes widen and she gasped, tears already gathering in her eyes. "You can really help me?" She asked in disbelief. Law nodded. "And I can treat you right now, right here." Kuina stared at him as tears slowly made their way down her cheeks. She looked behind her at Zoro, who was looking at her with a big smile, not yet in tears but very close. She then looked at Luffy, who gave her a thumbs up and a bright smile. 

She was going to live.

She returned her gaze to the doctor in front of her. "Please," She then bowed her head down as far as she could without falling off the ramp. "Please save me!" She cried out. Law smiled. "I will." He let her cry for a little before telling her to sit up straight. "Okay, now this might feel a bit weird, but it won't take long." The doctor said. Kuina nodded and looked at him.

Law took a deep breath and spread his hands out in front of him and the young woman. After a few seconds, the blue light returned, but this time it was around both of his hands. The doctor seemed to murmur something under his breath and a second later Kuina's body began to glow a gray-ish colour. Slowly, the gray colouring around the young woman began to make its way to Law's hands. It looked like the doctor's hands were sucking it up. The glow around Kuina slowly began to change colour to a more purple-ish colour. The glow around Law's hands, however, steadily changed to the gray colour Kuina's glow first had. 

After about three minutes, the glow around Law's hands and Kuina's body vanished. The doctor was breathing heavier than when they started and he seemed a little tired, but other than that he appeared to be fine. 

Kuina, however, felt lighter. Like something had been taken out from her body. She still didn't feel quite right, but it was a lot better than before _whatever _the doctor had done to her.__

____

____

"I've removed the disease from your body and put it in mine. My body is immune to diseases like this and your disease will vanish from my body within a few hours. You may still feel sick the coming few days, but that's just your body handling the change it just went through and healing the damage that the disease has done to your body. I suggest going to a doctor in a week or so to check if there's any trace of it left, but I'm sure I removed all of it."

"H-how does this even work?" Kuina asked shakily. What the merman had done to her, it was almost like.. like..

"It's magic!" 

Kuina looked over Law's shoulder to Luffy who was smiling from ear to ear. Law sighed but didn't correct the younger merman. Luffy just grinned. "I'm so glad you could help her! I _knew _you could do it!" He said with a laugh. "Luffy.." Kuina didn't know what to say. Instead, she just laughed and wiped her face to get rid of her tears.__

____

____

Suddenly, two arms wrapped around her from behind. She didn't even have to ask who it was. Zoro hid his face in her neck and just sat there for a minute. Kuina touched her brother's arm and smiled. Zoro was strong, but even he couldn't help but be emotional at a time like this. He almost lost the only family he had left. He must be very relieved.

Kuina looked at the doctor. "What do we owe you? We don't have a lot of money, but I'm sure we can work out some sort of payment agreement?" She asked. Law shook his head. "You don't need to pay me. I'm well aware of the fact that Luffy would never have returned home if it weren't for you two. I might not know him that well, but everyone else is glad that he has come home. I think that is payment enough." The merman said with a soft smile.

The dark-haired merman then turned to face the young sharkman."Luffy, we should be returning soon. It's not safe for us out here." He told the other. Luffy looked at him as a sense of sadness overcame him. He nodded and looked at Zoro and Kuina. "I guess we'll have to say goodbye now." He said silently. The two humans smiled sadly at him and nodded.

Law, knowing that Luffy wouldn't see his friends for a long while, _if _he ever saw them again, dove underwater and waited underneath the surface for Luffy to say goodbye to his friends. He didn't want to disturb such a moment.__

____

____

Luffy lifted his body out of the water and sat himself down on the ramp as best as he could with his tail. He looked at Kuina and smiled at her. He reached his hand out at her. "I'm going to miss you, Kuina. You're a great person and I hope that disease stays away forever." He said with a grin. Kuina laughed, ignored the outstretched hand and gave the young merman a hug. "I'm going to miss you too. Thank you for everything you've done for us." She said. Luffy returned the embrace with a smile.

When they let go of each other, Kuina stood up and stepped back. She looked at her brother for a moment before looking back at the sharkman. "I'll leave you two for a bit. Goodbye Luffy. Maybe we'll see each other again sometime!" She said as she waved at him. Luffy grinned. "Yeah! Bye Kuina!" He said and waved. Then Kuina walked to the other side of the boat and disappeard from sight. 

Luff then turned his attention to Zoro. For a second, both men just stared at each other without knowing what to say. This was goodbye. They might never see each other again after this. 

It was hard.

Luffy felt a familiar burning feeling in his eyes. He blinked a few times to get rid of it, but that only resulted in a few tears making their way out of the corners of his eyes. He sniffed.

"Zoro, you're a great friend even though you might not think that way. I know you still feel guilty for what you did, but I already forgave you." He paused to think. "God, I don't even know what to say. I really enjoyed the time we spend together. You saved me a-and I can't thank you enough f-for that." Another pause. 

"I.. Zoro, I.. I want to stay friends with you. I don't want this to end here! I-I want us to play more games t-together! I want us t-to spend time together! B-but I know that's not possible. I can't make y-you come here every week to spend time with me b-because not only do you live s-so far, no one can know that my city excists and having y-you dive here o often could make people s-suspect something. B-but.."

Zoro sighed hand knelt down next to the merman. He took the teen in his arms. Luffy sobbed on his shoulder and honestly, Zoro was starting to have trouble keeping his eyes dry as well. "It's alright, Luffy. I know what you mean. And you're right, I can't come here every week to hang out with you. But I'll be sure to let you know how I'm doing one way or another. I don't know how yet, but I will." He took a deep breath to calm his breathing.

"Luffy, you're annoying, stupid, bad at games, you have a huge appetite," Luffy snickered. "But, you're the greatest friend I ever had. I enjoyed the time spend together too. And yes, I still feel guilty for what I did, but now I know you're free and with the ones you love, I am willing to forgive myself." Zoro gently pushed his friend away from him and locked eyes with him. 

"Even though I've only known you for a few months, you are an important part of my life and I will never forget you. Not only for what you've done for me and my sister, but also for being an amazing friend. I-I really hope we'll see each other again sometime." The man said with a shaky smile. Luffy sniffed and nodded. The merman then went back in for a hug, which Zoro gladly accepted.

They stayed like that for a while, just in each other's arms. Every now and then a sob would escape one of them. They just wanted to be close to each other for as long as they could. 

Eventually, they let go of each other. Luffy sniffed and looked down at the water. Law was still waiting for him. He had to go. He slowly slipped off the ramp and into the water. He looked back at his best friend one last time.

"I will miss you, Zoro." He said with a small smile. Zoro smiled back. "I will miss you too, Luffy."

Luffy grinned at him through the tears as he slowly descended into the water. The last thing Zoro saw was Luffy's eyes looking at him from just below the surface. Then, the merman vanished. 

The green-haired man stared at the ocean for a while. He didn't look away even when his sister joined him on the ramp. Kuina leaned her head on his shoulder as she, too, looked at the water below.

"Luffy is a good kid. I hope we'll see him again some time." She said.

"Yeah," Zoro smiled. "Me too."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AN: ITS FINISHED!!
> 
> I finally finished this chapter. Took me waaaayy too long. I hope you enjoyed this final, pretty long chapter of East Blue Monster. 
> 
> I hope my way of writing didn't confuse you too much because, again, I'm not a native English speaker/writer and I'm just trying my best to write a decent fanfiction XD
> 
> Just to clarify, the merpeople city isn't the same as fishman island. So a lot of the things of fishman island aren't in this city, like the floating bubble things (which is why the merpeople here just swim their way everywhere). Also, if you didn't figure it out, Ace and Law are normal mermen, Sabo is a fishman and Jinbei is just his normal self.
> 
> Also, as a little compensation for the long wait, I've made fanart for a scene of this chapter. It's basically Zoro and Luffy swimming. You can find it on my DeviantArt page (FireArrowAce) if you want to take a look at it. I kinda want to make another piece of art with Luffy, Ace and Sabo, but I don't know if I have time to do that.  
> Oh, one last thing! I plan to make a sequel to this story. I don't know when it will be out since I'm working on too many fanfics in between college and internships, but the rough idea is there. But it's going to be a Zoro x Luffy story because I ship it (I hope that didn't show too much in this fanfic). I decided to not put that ship in this story since I know some people don't like that. So that's why I plan to make another story more focused on their relationship instead of Luffy being a merman.


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